Spirited Spring Break News, Observations & Thoughts ...

[WDW1974]

The video here is just clips shot from on the ride. Not official stuff, so not done by or for WDI. Imagineering does get footage of the rides for many purposes, though - reference video and training, mostly, but not usually released to the public. The figures were done by Garner Holt and WDI. They're all next generation AA's, with brand new control mechanisms and materials. Yeti's a totally different animal, inside and out, literally.

Yep ... he loves the nightlife, he loves to boogie ...

 

[Soarin' Over Pgh]

Per @tikiman poly waterfall being drained

one of the best things about the GCH. it will be missed.

 

[englanddg]

Yep ... he loves the nightlife, he loves to boogie ...

I can't think of that song and not think about Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

 

[ASilmser]

Id say that Disney had every intention of it being 3 FP+ and no park hopping and keeping it that way. The predictions that it was an attempt to simply keep you on property were correct and its backed up by the comments made by Rasullo and others with quotes like 'going after a bigger share of your wallet'. They dont care about your vacation being enhanced, they just want the money, and they were to ignorant to realize that allowing park hopping would keep people on property, they thought taking it away would keep you at the same park all day. Another clear cut case of the executives who know nothing about theme parks because they dont care about/visit them. So the 'complainers' begin complaining and then Disney changes it to the way it should have been from the start and the defenders of MM+ pat each other on the back. They are more clueless than little ol' Fedra when she wonders where all her extra YT views came from.

Now it seems that you are speaking without any evidence. I have VERY limited knowledge of the MM+ rollout, but what insider knowledge I do have is this: Disney always intended to roll things out slowly, in stages, and take the guest feedback VERY SERIOUSLY. They knew from the beginning that 3 FP's per day was PROBABLY not going to be enough, but they didn't know FOR SURE until they tried it. They knew from the beginning that the park hopping option was going to have to happen, but they needed to roll out the one park option first to get the system rolling. The reason they aren't communicating very well is because nothing is set in stone and delays were inevitable.

Bottom line is they care about guest feedback for the very reason you say they don't. They have a lot on the line with this system, so they HAVE TO respond to the overwhelming guest concerns for the "bottom line." However, this concern (the hopping and the daily 3) was anticipated before the roll-out, but seen as a good starting point to test the system.

Keep those complaints coming--they do make a difference (and they make this thread interesting), but don't assert that the first phase of roll-out was what they intended to stick with. It simply isn't true, and it makes you seem as clueless as "little ol' Fedra."

 

[WDW1974]

Random Spring Break observation ... last night the Grand Floridian parking lot was as empty as I've ever seen it since the DVC opened. By far, too, easily double if not triple the number of open spaces you'd see any night of the year. (@PhotoDave219 can back me up.) Friend on Twitter said Beach Club also not busy. This on the Monday before Good Friday.

I was up there for a week. I stayed at Portofino Bay, which was not at all crowded. I visited Cabana Bay, which was a ghost town, but has an excuse as it had just opened.

I spent time, dined or drank at the Grand Flo, the Poly, the WL and the BW. They all seemed very empty, the WL was about the busiest (and is the cheapest by far of that group). Parking lots at all of the resorts except the Poly (which has half the lot ripped up and behind fences) were maybe one third to half full. So, no, I don't think it is that busy.

And there are no breathless phased shutdown threads now when I would have expected yesterday and today to be packed.

But, to be fair and balanced, UNI felt just as empty at WDW did. I don't think it was crowded at all when I was there. I would expect it this week, however.

Maybe a lot of schools went for an earlier Spring Break this year, or had to cancel because of snow days. Or maybe the price for WDW hotels has reached the tipping point, and they're finding out they've priced themselves out of the Orlando market.

It could be the timing of Easter this year. It could be all the snow days lost as you say in key WDW/O-Town markets. It could be the price of a vacation. Or it could be all of the above plus the fact our economy NEVER recovered (47% of American adults that are able to work are either unemployed, underemployed or have given up on life ... ) from what Wall Street and the last two (maybe 4-5) administrations have done to the American worker.

 

[wdisney9000]

I just feel it is rather trivial to constantly point out the negatives when, in my opinion, the positive outweigh them. If anyone is so busy pointing out the negatives while on property, I think they may be focused in another direction than I am while there.

This is from a post by @lazyboy97o and it is the ABSOLUTE perfect response so this:

-"Nobody is downloading some compiled list of broken effects, paying to go on vacation, and then going around the parks looking for them then shouting them out to others. The sort of familiarity that enables a person to recognize that a minor effect is not working comes from passion."

People have to stop mistaking that "passion" he speaks of as negativity. I even written a few trip reports (most are half finished still) and they are way more positive than negative. I still visit WDW even though I see a few things that need fixing and I have a great time, every time. But like other members, much wiser than I have said, WDW has been and will continue to be operating off the nostalgia of the parks.

Fixed that for you.
Never said you or anyone else cannot be critical or have a concern. I wouldn't try to convince anyone to not go that route if they truly felt the need. I just feel it is rather trivial to constantly point out the negatives when, in my opinion, the positive outweigh them. If anyone is so busy pointing out the negatives while on property, I think they may be focused in another direction than I am while there.

So, we were just there, right, and the hub work at the MK prevented us from grabbing "our spot" for the castle show and Wishes. Did it upset me? A little. Did I come on here to bash Disney for taking away my 'joy'?

Does your "joy" come from Wishes, or the spot you stand in to watch it? Imagine if Wishes got cut and replaced with nothing for 8 months so they could save the money and claim it as profits from MM+. Then you logged onto wdwmagic and posted how you were upset Wishes was gone and there was nothing in its place and you dont understand why they're not doing anything about it. Then your labeled negative by some members and they will assume you hate Disney.

Wishes may be an extreme example to use but if people say nothing about all the smaller cuts they are making, what's to stop them for going for a big one? So many people complain about someone who complains light bulbs are burned out. The guy that complains about light bulbs being burned out is the reason they don't dare take the chance and cut something major or cut too many things at once (which I bet the current administration would do in a heart beat) because then people may start listening to "crazy burned out light bulb guy" and start to realize all the other stuff he was complaining about was true. I feel like Fox Mulder sometimes when it comes to this subject.

 

[WDW1974]

Depends on what you mean by moderate prices. To me, moderate is below 160 a night because I consider holiday inn express a moderate hotel. Obviously Disneys view of moderate is blown up especially when Caribbean beach, was probably my least favorite hotel I've stayed at recently. I have to count the best westerns that my company put me up in.

Having g said that, deluxe prices are so far beyond my wallet it isn't funny. I agree with you completely.

I've said it countless time and so many here like me to repeat myself but Orlando isn't NYC, San Francisco, Paris, London, Tokyo etc ... it can't command $700 a night rooms. Hell, it struggles (except for conventioneers) with $350 a nigh hotel rooms.

With all those rooms available in the $50-150 price range, Disney's business model isn't just insane, but isn't sustainable in the long term. That is why you read @ParentsOf4 talking about deluxe resort occupancy falling and about DVC being added so quickly. They have priced a vast chunk of their audience out of the market. And the Pixie Dust addicts are either buying DVC or just downsizing into moderate and value resorts. And those prices are not anymore sustainable either.

A WDW moderate resort that I regularly stayed at for $65-100 a night a decade ago isn't worth any more than that now. And I'm not willing to pay more than that for it. And the cheap motels, that are cheap in name only, are way too downmarket for me.

 

[WDW1974]

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I so miss dining on a slab of prime rib with sides on pewter plates while fireworks burst outside all around ... but Disney makes so much more money off idiots with their brats who think nothing of dropping $75 a person for character meals with photo packages, so I no longer get to dine at the castle.

 

[Funmeister]

Ratatouille is confirmed to officially open July 10. This new video shows it will not be 85% screen based :

The video also shows it will not be 100% located in the U.S.

 

[asianway]

I so miss dining on a slab of prime rib with sides on pewter plates while fireworks burst outside all around ... but Disney makes so much more money off idiots with their brats who think nothing of dropping $75 a person for character meals with photo packages, so I no longer get to dine at the castle.

The beef barley soup was sublime

 

[WDW1974]

Hey Spirit

I was at Sawgrass Friday evening and decided to pop into the Outlet Store (Character Outlet/Premiere/Whatever It Calls Itself These Days). The inventory was dismal, to say the least. My only score was an EPCOT 30 baseball cap reduced to $4.99 - it was the last one, and I was very happy to have discovered it!

I've been able to pick up some great stuff in the past (like the MK 40th anniversary plate set, it's a small world plate set, silk-screened tin attraction poster set, etc.), but that store is so hit or miss (come to think of it, more "miss"). The apparel is so atrocious, but seeing Carsland merchandise from DCA is always a laugh!

Perhaps I'll run into you at the Outlet one day, laughing over a rack of "I'm With The Band" shirts!

The inventory (just compared to the O-Town stores) has just been abysmal over the last few years, so much so that I have asked CMs that work there if they are closing the store.

I have been visiting since it opened in its first, much larger, location back in 1995. I used to drop hundreds of dollars in visits. And I'd get very nice stuff for both myself and gifts for others.

It's just become largely a tees and plush and cheap toys location.

I'll have to make a visit to Mickey's of Glendale soon!!!

 

[WDW1974]

Beautiful, yet still doesn't describe why King Stefan from Sleeping Beauty would have his banquet hall in Cinderella Castle. Then again, Cinderella opening a restaurant in her own castle doesn't make all that much sense either.

I don't think about such fanboi quandaries. I just know that from 1974 until about 2002, I had dozens of wonderful meals there. And none since. They ruined it forever for me. But I am not a six-year-old girl nor a Mommy to one. I have no interest in what they are selling.

 

[wdisney9000]

Now it seems that you are speaking without any evidence. I have VERY limited knowledge of the MM+ rollout, but what insider knowledge I do have is this: Disney always intended to roll things out slowly, in stages, and take the guest feedback VERY SERIOUSLY. They knew from the beginning that 3 FP's per day was PROBABLY not going to be enough, but they didn't know FOR SURE until they tried it. They knew from the beginning that the park hopping option was going to have to happen, but they needed to roll out the one park option first to get the system rolling. The reason they aren't communicating very well is because nothing is set in stone and delays were inevitable.

Bottom line is they care about guest feedback for the very reason you say they don't. They have a lot on the line with this system, so they HAVE TO respond to the overwhelming guest concerns for the "bottom line." However, this concern (the hopping and the daily 3) was anticipated before the roll-out, but seen as a good starting point to test the system.

Keep those complaints coming--they do make a difference (and they make this thread interesting), but don't assert that the first phase of roll-out was what they intended to stick with. It simply isn't true, and it makes you seem as clueless as "little ol' Fedra."

I'll gladly be the first to admit that I could be way off. I never claimed to have proof that what I said was fact. That's why I said " I bet"... Disney does have a lot invested in this, but they answer to the BoD not the guest and guest feedback is probly more to gain a better perspective of how to separate you from your cash and less about your vacation experience. Just look at the surveys they ask you to take. The questions aren't to learn what guests want in the form of a great vacation. It's about giving you what you think is a better vacation than your what your paying for.

I'm sure they intended to change the form of MM+ after the first rollout. Heck, they haven't even "fully" rolled it out and it's been a lot longer for that ROI than they predicted. They're so desperate to show a profit from it that theyre forced to advertise the actual testing of MM+ as a reason to visit. If you would like to believe that all this is because they actually want to make your vacation better than by all means, keep on strolling down that path with Fedra. Lol.

In all seriousness, I really do appreciate your view on the issue. It reminds me to consider the possibility I could be absolutely wrong. I could be crazy for thinking the way I do and I don't blame you for thinking that of me, but maybe I'm right, just maybe. If the next regime to run WDW is similar to the current, then the parks will continue to operate off nostalgia.

 

[WDW1974]

You should see a good inflow when the marketplace coop stuff bombs. I'm surprised they are taking that risk when they won't even do a print run on an attraction poster tshirt without locking in preorders.

That 'WDW one location exclusive' merchandise ... is already being sold at Disneyland on MSUSA. I saw pics on Mouseplanet of the stuff.

It is impossible for anyone who works at Disney in merchandise to keep anything unique to one resort, let alone one location.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

The video also shows it will not be 100% located in the U.S.

Doesn't matter for those of us going to DLP in the near future.

 

[WDW1974]

I listen when I feel like having some WDW mixed in with my day, not when I'm trying to get any serious WDW news.

He makes a lot of money off the Disney name, and I'd assume the company feels it's better to have an "unofficial" representative who loves everything Disney instead of a certified paid employee.

He is paid. Just not with a paycheck with Mickey on it.

He is paid in swag, freebies, trips, cruises and access to people that can make him sell more advertising for his site and more books and tours.

He is paid whether or not Dr. Blondie meets him behind a closed Kissimmee Shoney's and hands him a briefcase with $75,000 in it.

He is King of the Whores.

And that is why the law degree (assuming he hasn't been disbarred) gets to collect dust and the family Italian restaurant gets run without him, ostensibly.

Mongello is easily making six figures a year off being a Disney BRAND advocate. Believe me, Gary Buchanan wishes he made what Loveable Lou makes. So does Dr. Blondie ... and Bland Tommy and even Lovely Leanne.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Does Disney sell Frozen DVDs on the Magical Express bus?

Just give the driver a POS machine, I'm sure he could sell a few.

 

[WDW1974]

Agreed. If you're on twitter, check out my tweets from this morning (I'm @ericarose). I work for an apparel company and manage the licensed screen printed t-shirts, so I was able to share some thoughts on Disney Design Group's "business practices" with these stupid limited release shirts.

I don't think the Marketplace Co Op stuff will totally bomb, because that stuff will only be sold at that location and online (supposedly. This could change, of course). Perhaps they will not manufacture a ton of products so they don't have to hold a lot of inventory and then send it off to the outlet stores after a few months of low sell thrus.

Those shirts will be sold all over WDW and DLR. Take it to the bank ... they are already selling WDW Co_op exclusive dinnerware and glasses at DLR.

 

[asianway]

Those shirts will be sold all over WDW and DLR. Take it to the bank ... they are already selling WDW Co_op exclusive dinnerware and glasses at DLR.

I don't know about that. Ever since the online exclusive DL space mtn 35(which ended up on liquidation) bombed they've been doing the online preorders

 

[WDW1974]

I read somewhere, maybe in this very thread, where these boards were compared to Sports Talk Radio. You know, you call in to bash your team but then you turn around and take the family to a game and drop $300 or $400 for an evening of entertainment. Skip over to the Magic where we feel free to bash the 'Team', talk about how much better we would be if we just did what the competition was doing, and then we go and drop $3,000 or $4,000 for a week's worth of entertainment. Whoever came up with that one, nailed it. To quote our gladiator friend, "Are we not entertained?"

Happy Tax Day!

I like to talk about how Disney was and how it is now and why that is. If people view it as 'bashing' I truly feel they're very much missing the point.

I also think it is one's duty to pay taxes and that the rich should pay a lot more than they currently are, but that's another discussion (and I do realize we have conditioned Walmart workers that live in trailers to be against taxing the rich more under a delusion that someday they could be rich too and do they really want to pay more money to support their co-worker Loqueishia who is lazy and had eight kids before she was out of her 20s? yep ... what a crazy country!!!)