Spaceship Earth Burning Rome Scene

[IcicleM]

The smell on the ride is the same smell of that of burning wood. I love it.

And, just like most discussions on this message board, you're all probably over thinking it.

 

[G00fyDad]

You're sure of that? Sounds unlikely to me.

That's just it, I don't know. I was basically asking if anyone thought that the calls maybe made TDO decide to scrap this effect or is it just another case of an attraction effect gone downhill? (I know that some calls about this have reportedly been made. I know of at least one for sure.) If enough people were calling in they may have done this and with as many things get busted and broken and then not fixed it could be getting chalked up with the rest of them. But I agree that it being broken and not being fixed is more likely.

 

[Brava Centauri]

This has been one of my biggest disappointments with EPCOT lately. While it may seem silly to some, the scent of Rome "burning" has always been very distinctive and an iconic part of the ride. Considering how the sense of smell is most closely connected to memory, understandably for many of us it's a cherished detail. I've been puzzled as to why the scent has been seriously reduced in intensity, and sometimes completely absent. One of my theories is that perhaps the mechanism that distributes the scent isn't working properly? In the past, you could clearly hear the spray--or whatever you care to call the thing that creates the "smoke"--as pretty loud. Now, it isn't very loud at all.

The "smell of Rome burning" even has it's own Facebook page. I doubt somebody who works for Disney and monitors fan chatter on the web is unaware of the unique popularity for something so seemingly inconsequential. They have to be aware of it, somehow. If the mechanism is indeed broken, clearly they're not making it a priority to fix until whenever the next refurb takes place. We can only hope that it is something they actually will fix.

I should stop thinking so much about these once-great attractions and what Disney has allowed to happen with them. It makes me too grumpy and sad.

 

[powlessfamily4]

More than likely someone had an allergic reaction to it and all smoke has been suspended until the attorneys hash it out. I am sure it is right behind the cheese burning incident LOL!

Okay just kidding.... please don't run with it.

 

[Atkins]

This has been one of my biggest disappointments with EPCOT lately. While it may seem silly to some, the scent of Rome "burning" has always been very distinctive and an iconic part of the ride. Considering how the sense of smell is most closely connected to memory, understandably for many of us it's a cherished detail. I've been puzzled as to why the scent has been seriously reduced in intensity, and sometimes completely absent. One of my theories is that perhaps the mechanism that distributes the scent isn't working properly? In the past, you could clearly hear the spray--or whatever you care to call the thing that creates the "smoke"--as pretty loud. Now, it isn't very loud at all.

The "smell of Rome burning" even has it's own Facebook page. I doubt somebody who works for Disney and monitors fan chatter on the web is unaware of the unique popularity for something so seemingly inconsequential. They have to be aware of it, somehow. If the mechanism is indeed broken, clearly they're not making it a priority to fix until whenever the next refurb takes place. We can only hope that it is something they actually will fix.

I should stop thinking so much about these once-great attractions and what Disney has allowed to happen with them. It makes me too grumpy and sad.

This is where these things get frustrating. You're assuming they know fans are upset because they "observe web chatter." I have seen no evidence beyond paranoia that fan postings in forums have ever lead anything to being fixed. You need to send the complaints directly Disney so it reaches the appropriate people through the correct channels. Other wise, they may as well assume no one actually cares.

 

[G00fyDad]

This is where these things get frustrating. You're assuming they know fans are upset because they "observe web chatter." I have seen no evidence beyond paranoia that fan postings in forums have ever lead anything to being fixed. You need to send the complaints directly Disney so it reaches the appropriate people through the correct channels. Other wise, they may as well assume no one actually cares.

I have sent letters in. You know where they likely end up...?

Here:

 

[Brava Centauri]

This is where these things get frustrating. You're assuming they know fans are upset because they "observe web chatter." I have seen no evidence beyond paranoia that fan postings in forums have ever lead anything to being fixed. You need to send the complaints directly Disney so it reaches the appropriate people through the correct channels. Other wise, they may as well assume no one actually cares.

Like what G00fyDad said, sending in complaints directly to Disney simply results in canned responses. They are no more likely to take your comments seriously than they would if they did indeed troll the internet. Does that mean they'll do anything about it? No, unless they're swamped with complaints at guest services and Seimens steps in with complaints as well. Not likely to happen.

As I said, I hope it's a malfunction of some kind that Disney is just too lazy to fix at this time. We can only hope (like we do for much of EPCOT and WDW in general) that they'll fix the problem in the future.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

This has been one of my biggest disappointments with EPCOT lately. While it may seem silly to some, the scent of Rome "burning" has always been very distinctive and an iconic part of the ride. Considering how the sense of smell is most closely connected to memory, understandably for many of us it's a cherished detail.

Considering how Disney likes to present itself as looking at every detail, knowing how to manipulate psychological cues, etc., I'm surprised that EVERY ride doesn't have some kind of (pleasant) scent in it. Even some of the unintentional smells have a following... Pirates water, anyone?.

 

[dreamscometrue]

Like what G00fyDad said, sending in complaints directly to Disney simply results in canned responses. They are no more likely to take your comments seriously than they would if they did indeed troll the internet. Does that mean they'll do anything about it? No, unless they're swamped with complaints at guest services and Seimens steps in with complaints as well. Not likely to happen.

Unfortunately, you are mistaken.

I sent two e-mails in my life to WDW, one in 2010, and the other last summer. The first got a reply that certainly didn't seem 'canned'. The guest services lady and I e-mailed back and forth 3 or 4 times. The letter last summer got a phone call on a Saturday afternoon from a rep of Meg Crofton's. I started a thread about that, and learned that others got phone calls, etc. as well.

http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?t=786348

If you spend time on these boards, you read about lots of positive, and personal, responses. (Of course, people still tend to complain online many times more often than posting positive experiences.)

 

[G00fyDad]

Unfortunately, you are mistaken.

I sent two e-mails in my life to WDW, one in 2010, and the other last summer. The first got a reply that certainly didn't seem 'canned'. The guest services lady and I e-mailed back and forth 3 or 4 times. The letter last summer got a phone call on a Saturday afternoon from a rep of Meg Crofton's. I started a thread about that, and learned that others got phone calls, etc. as well.

http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?t=786348

If you spend time on these boards, you read about lots of positive, and personal, responses. (Of course, people still tend to complain online many times more often than posting positive experiences.)

Out of the many letters that I have sent in, all in a mature and well laid out manner mind you, I have only ever gotten the normal canned responses. No matter how "personal" you think the response is, I doubt it has any real weight behind it. More often than not, no matter how real the CM is with you, it is still just another way of saying "Please do not worry about it and stop calling us."... with a smile. The CMs are never, ever, going to confirm or deny anything, even specific repair work, unless it has first been publicly announced. So, by that reasoning, any response you ever got was a smoke screen.

 

[Atkins]

Out of the many letters that I have sent in, all in a mature and well laid out manner mind you, I have only ever gotten the normal canned responses. No matter how "personal" you think the response is, I doubt it has any real weight behind it. More often than not, no matter how real the CM is with you, it is still just another way of saying "Please do not worry about it and stop calling us."... with a smile. The CMs are never, ever, going to confirm or deny anything, even specific repair work, unless it has first been publicly announced. So, by that reasoning, any response you ever got was a smoke screen.

I'm going with dreamcomestrue over Goofydad's pessimistic exaggerations. If you send things like letters, petitions, etc. through the correct channels, they are much more likely to become aware of the problem if they use an actual standard corporate structure, which they do.

And yes, I think it's sad that people do a lot of complaining to get attention online, but don't care enough to do anything to actually fix the problems because it takes an extra step. Whether you think so or not, Disney definitely wants and takes input from their guests.

 

[G00fyDad]

I'm going with dreamcomestrue over Goofydad's pessimistic exaggerations. If you send things like letters, petitions, etc. through the correct channels, they are much more likely to become aware of the problem if they use an actual standard corporate structure, which they do.

And yes, I think it's sad that people do a lot of complaining to get attention online, but don't care enough to do anything to actually fix the problems because it takes an extra step. Whether you think so or not, Disney definitely wants and takes input from their guests.

Pessimistic? LOL Glad to see that you think you know me. I don't see a single exaggeration in my post. What I stated is the actual, 100% real account, of what happened. But I tell you what, you appear to be antagonistic. How's that for an assumption? :wave: If you are under the impression that you and a few other people have got Disney's ear and and are making a real difference then you are not only antagonistic, you're delusional. :ROFLOL: Maybe, just maybe, if a real petition was made and thousands of people signed it, and you could somehow get it to the right people (not the normal "mail complaints here" channels) then it may, just maybe, make a difference. But to suggest that you writing a letter gets more "real" attention than one the rest of us would write is borderline narcissistic. :wave: Oh wait.... there I go thinking I know you.

 

[I_heart_Tigger]

awww...I'm one of the one's who really associate that smell with this attraction. When I smell something similar even here at home in Nova Scotia, I'm instantly transported to that scene in the ride.

I'll see next week if the smell is still there - I'm sure I'll be on the ride 3 or 4 times, it's one of my favourites.

Also, I haven't written to Disney World a lot but when I have I have had great responses from them. In one instance they not only resolved the issue I had at a merchandise location but mailed me a new product to replace mine.

I have also written about a customer service issue at a resort and had a response right away from Disney explaining the resort manager would contact me and a follow up from the manager that was not only helpful but cleared up some of the procedures that were in place and why things were done that way. In that instance, several months later I recieved a very nice e-mail from the manager letting me know that they actually were adjusting some of their procedures and he just wanted me to know because he thought that I would be appreciative of the changes...which I was.

I have recieve a "canned response" when I basically wrote a letter expressing my gratitude to 2 cast members and how that contrasted with my difficulty with another CM who I found - less than "Disney" but other than than all correspondance with Disney has been quite favourable.

 

[Brava Centauri]

If you spend time on these boards, you read about lots of positive, and personal, responses. (Of course, people still tend to complain online many times more often than posting positive experiences.)

Unfortunately, this is not always the case and rarely, if ever, results In any sort of effectual action. I have submitted emails, phone calls, and even personal comments/complaints to Disney and other Orlando theme parks. I've received both canned and allegedly "personal" responses, as well as follow-up phone calls and supposedly "elevated" cases to people "higher" up in management. Nothing has come out of my complaints/comments, and "promises" that were supposedly made were never acted upon. Disney specifically seems inconsistent with their "pixie dust" damage control. Things are different between a problem with merchandise or a conflict with services. Any cost associated with situations like those are a drop in the bucket, if anything, to the company.

Hey, I'm not saying people shouldn't bother with writing a letter. If you think it works, go for it, you have nothing to lose. If you have seen corrective action from doing so, that's great--I'm genuinely glad for you. If we could convince people to boycott the ride and write letters, then yeah, Disney would crack open their padlocked coffers to do a relatively simple fix. But even after all the hoopla made over the first "revision" of Imagination, Disney was still only willing to take the cheap way out and we got an only slightly less sucky ride.

The reason why so many people are pessimistic is because Disney has made it clear that they don't care as long as they still make money. Unfortunately, the average guest doesn't care about "show quality" ... The average guest won't realize that Rome is supposed to have a distinctive scent. Face it, even the CMs who work the closest with the attractions are ignored. So, even if they get a dozen emails and troll fan sites, unless they see an impact on their profits and they feel that the fix isn't necessary, they'll give their excuses and politely write us off.

 

[G00fyDad]

The reason why so many people are pessimistic is because Disney has made it clear that they don't care as long as they still make money. Unfortunately, the average guest doesn't care about "show quality" ... The average guest won't realize that Rome is supposed to have a distinctive scent. Face it, even the CMs who work the closest with the attractions are ignored. So, even if they get a dozen emails and troll fan sites, unless they see an impact on their profits and they feel that the fix isn't necessary, they'll give their excuses and politely write us off.

^^ This.

 

[Freshee61]

I went on it not too long ago maybe January or February? How ever next Week
I will stop by just for that to check it out. And the smell better be there(fist of fury shaking!

 

[Atkins]

^^ This.

Which is totally unsubstantiated, because you don't know. You only assume the worst to go along with your doom and gloom mentality. I said you exaggerated, because that's why you did with that image and everything else. The fact that two people contradicted you in this thread proves your absolute stance on that is wrong.

Again, Disney won't know that people care about something unless you let them know. Something like that scent can't be that cost prohibitive. And I'm tired of this exaggeration that Disney doesn't care about anything and will let the park rot as long as it makes money. The Big Thunder Mountain and Mainstreet rehabs recently tell me that's a lie I think. I don't think Big Thunder technically had to go under an extensive rehab at all. They may not fix things at the rate you want, but they definitely are fixing things at any point in the year.

 

[Sans Souci]

Which is totally unsubstantiated, because you don't know. You only assume the worst to go along with your doom and gloom mentality. I said you exaggerated, because that's why you did with that image and everything else. The fact that two people contradicted you in this thread proves your absolute stance on that is wrong.

Again, Disney won't know that people care about something unless you let them know. Something like that scent can't be that cost prohibitive. And I'm tired of this exaggeration that Disney doesn't care about anything and will let the park rot as long as it makes money. The Big Thunder Mountain and Mainstreet rehabs recently tell me that's a lie I think. I don't think Big Thunder technically had to go under an extensive rehab at all. They may not fix things at the rate you want, but they definitely are fixing things at any point in the year.

You wouldn't happen to be a concierge in a "Big Name" hotel in Chicago, who is also an ASU alum, would you?

 

[G00fyDad]

Which is totally unsubstantiated, because you don't know. You only assume the worst to go along with your doom and gloom mentality. I said you exaggerated, because that's why you did with that image and everything else. The fact that two people contradicted you in this thread proves your absolute stance on that is wrong.

Again, Disney won't know that people care about something unless you let them know. Something like that scent can't be that cost prohibitive. And I'm tired of this exaggeration that Disney doesn't care about anything and will let the park rot as long as it makes money. The Big Thunder Mountain and Mainstreet rehabs recently tell me that's a lie I think. I don't think Big Thunder technically had to go under an extensive rehab at all. They may not fix things at the rate you want, but they definitely are fixing things at any point in the year.

Yeah. That's me. Mr. Doom and Gloom. LMAO :ROFLOL: Nice.

Two people contradicted me so I am absolutely wrong? LOL THAT seems like an exaggeration to me. You haven't actually sat back and read what you're sending have you? Just drop it. I don't really care any longer. I love going to Disney, I dislike arguing with people who feel that they need to start magnified crap with everyone, and Disney does need to improve things. It is just plain sad that you think they give a crap about your letters. But you keep sending them if it makes you feel better.:wave: now, I have much better things to do with my time than to waste it going back and forth with someone looking for an arguement where there is none. Have a nice day.

 

[Sans Souci]

Here are my experiences with contacting Disney. If it is to give accolades, they contacted me personally, thanked me, and let me know the person I wrote about will be recognized. If I write in with a negative experience, I am either ignored or sent a form letter, telling me they apologize I feel disappointed.

That whole "apologize if I feel disappointed" is the biggest non-apology in my book. They remove the burden of meeting my expectations from themselves and place it on me.