Spirited Spring Break News, Observations & Thoughts ...

[lazyboy97o]

true but they get interaction regardless of a signed piece of paper...plus in my opinion if they want longer interaction, that is what some of the character meals can do

I don't hear people complaining about Buzz stamping their book and loss of interaction there

is it better to get 10 people through with longer interaction and a signed piece of paper or 100 with shorter interaction and a stamped autograph? I don't know

Show is supposed to come before Efficiency.

 

[BrianLo]

I've had an idea for years that will speed up character greetings... forget the hand written autographs and opt for a stamp with their signature (like Buzz does).

I have an autograph book from when I was a kid in the early 90's and they all stamped then (granted don't think we did any M&G with the princesses, but all the foam-heads did). If I recall we had the Fab 5, Chip and Dale, Aladdin perhaps and a few others. Also Universal did too as I recall getting them from Woody the Woodpecker, Fievel and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (not sure if they were USO or Hollywood Studios).

 

[WDWDad13]

Show is supposed to come before Efficiency.

sure but with that being said, so then why don't they spend longer interacting, or why doesn't the parade stop every 20 yards, or why doesn't an individual character get assigned to your table during a character meal?

all I'm saying here is with the crowds and lines anna and elsa are creating right now... I would happily and easily give up a handwritten autograph for a stamp and a slightly reduced time (when they would have signed the paper) if I knew it meant many more kids and families would get to experience them as well vs being turned away.

 

[Cesar R M]

The wait times for other attractions were spared long wait times with all the guest standing in the Elsa and Anna Queue at Fairytale.

photo's mouse steps

Lots of Adults without Children in that queue, a phenomenon I can't wrap my brain around.

The adults in line to see the Frozen characters seems to be a phenomenon not just at WDW.
There are a lot of sites I frequent (art ones) and social (like tumblr) that have huge "fans" .. including "shippers" (romantic involved fans).

Dunno why Frozen was such a hit. But then.. I suppose its due of the powers of Ice.
Another character that had such attention by the opposite group (girls) was Jack Frost from RISE OF THE GUARDIANS... strongly hit by "shippers" and cosplayers too.

 

[NowInc]

sure but with that being said, so then why don't they spend longer interacting, or why doesn't the parade stop every 20 yards, or why doesn't an individual character get assigned to your table during a character meal?

all I'm saying here is with the crowds and lines anna and elsa are creating right now... I would happily and easily give up a handwritten autograph for a stamp and a slightly reduced time (when they would have signed the paper) if I knew it meant many more kids and families would get to experience them as well vs being turned away.

You could also look at it like you are getting an extra princess for that time.

 

[Cesar R M]

Not doubting you at all. Different strokes I guess. As long as it is respectful I guess I can't judge them. But if it is becoming something mainstream I would find that more than troubling.

OK leaving this thread. But I am encouraged that Iger has been spending a lot of time at WDW. I'd assume that is a good thing for the future.

Probably old fans of the old disney age that haven't gone out of the pixie dust?
or perhaps "first time and only opportunity of life" type people?

I had a photo with one princess last time I went to WDW, but then.. first trip ever.. and also a friend wanted me to take the photo for fan-reasons (Princess Merida).

I know its kinda easy to just point and pass judgements, but a lot of people have their reasons (which can be many and not just outright creepyness manchildren issues).

 

[Darth Sidious]

Do you think the low capacity in the parks (filled parks) vs the low occupancy rates in the Disney branded hotels at WDW finally made him see red alert and change his posture on "sell as expensive as possible and always count pennies" ?

I think people underestimate Bob's work ethic. I have to like the man though as a fellow Long Islander.

 

[FigmentJedi]

The adults in line to see the Frozen characters seems to be a phenomenon not just at WDW.
There are a lot of sites I frequent (art ones) and social (like tumblr) that have huge "fans" .. including "shippers" (romantic involved fans).

Dunno why Frozen was such a hit. But then.. I suppose its due of the powers of Ice.
Another character that had such attention by the opposite group (girls) was Jack Frost from RISE OF THE GUARDIANS... strongly hit by "shippers" and cosplayers too.

Half the budget of Next-Gen was creating a weather control device for viral advertising purposes. That's why this winter was so terrible.

 

[Cesar R M]

EDIT TO ADD: I just realized most of you won't give two hoots about this post. Sorry about that!!! Tom, this one's for you!!

We had been to Tokyo in 2008 and on that trip, we did a number of the "big" tourist type things... Tsukiji fish market, we went to the 5th station of Mt. Fuji (which is basically about halfway up), Hakone National Park, rode a bullet train, etc... So this trip we wanted to try to not repeat anything at all, which worked out great.

For example, one of the drawbacks of Mt. Fuji is it takes quite some time to get there. So this trip, we climbed Mt. Takao. It's about 45 minutes outside the city by train, which is easily do-able, and which takes you through different parts of the city you wouldn't see otherwise. At the base of the mountain is a small village with all sorts of cool food booths, and trinket shops, and the like. Really fun shopping. There's a ski-gondola ride you can take about half way up (which was great, and freaked out the kids), and from there it's about a 45 minute hike through shrines and temples, and forests, and amazing views. There are even a few small restaurants carved into the mountain side that you can stop at for noodles or what have you, as well as small vendors selling SNACKS (I know of your affinity for those!). There's even a monkey park along the way. And that's just on the path we chose. I believe there are 6 paths, all of which provide a different experience. One walks past waterfalls. One crosses a huge suspension bridge. That kind of thing. When you get to the top, when you look one direction you have a CLOSE view of Mt. Fuji, and from that same spot, if you turn around, you have an incredible view of Tokyo. It was absolutely worth the afternoon. I could imagine a shutterbug like you going NUTS.

Other than that, we went to Harajuku on a Sunday morning to see all the teenagers dressed in cosplay and check out all the trendy shops and eat crepes (it's what they do there... There are probably 20 crepe stands). We blinked and had been there 3 hours. Harajuku is where the Olympic village was in 1964, so the main stadium is nearby, plus a HUGE park with a massive shrine. We walked through it, and stumbled across a traditional Japanese wedding procession which was incredible to see.

We went up SkyTree Tower, which was incredible.

We spent a day in Ueno Park, which is where they have the Cherry Blossom Festival every year. We were about two weeks to early for that, but they were setting everything up, which was cool to see. Also in that park is their Zoo, which we spent a few hours in and our kids loved. They have pandas, but it was closed when we were there.

We ate at a lot of good restaurants, but I wanted to find a "fun" place for the kids... So I did my homework and found Ninja Asaksa, a ninja themed restaurant. It was a lot of fun, and one of the highest rated restaurants in Tokyo. To get to your table they lead you through all these secret passages and over secret drawbridges to your little private room that looks carved out of stone. The food was very high end, but also very dicey for a Westerner. We tried it all, but only probably ate half of it. It was a blast, but WAS NOT CHEAP. For 5 of us, it was $450.

We did plenty of other stuff... For example we spent a good amount of time in Odaiba... But what I've described here are the things that I would recommend to anyone visiting Tokyo (if you haven't already!!).

The country and the people are just amazing. Wonderful. And those aren't words in my daily vocabulary. But there's just no other way to say it. Our 17 year old has said over and over that if she spoke Japanese, she absolutely would live there for a while when she gets out of school. And I believe her. Heck, I probably would too, if it were feasible.

Seems I have to add this to my bucket list of things to do before I die.
Awesome post!

 

[Gabe1]

My wife loves to go get her picture with characters and get autographs. There's nothing creepy about how she does it. She's just being a big kid and having fun.

So not a quote about your wife.....my DS roomate was a face character. Multiple times a day there were certain men that just made her skin crawl. She hated having that uncomfortable feeling and needing to smile while they put their bodies close to her where in real life she would have done something about it. Like Typhoon Lagoon's wave pool Princesses attract not only the average guest but the creepity. My heart goes out to some of these very young Princesses and Princes for that matter,with a handful of solo adult guests each day that send that vibe of icky-ness.

 

[tribbleorlfl]

You know, most people would think spending any amount of time discussing WDW on the internet would be weird. I don't think any of us are right to judge someone's interests. It's not for me, but why do I care what other people do? There's a lot of "pot calling the kettle black" in this thread and it's annoying.

Glad I'm not the only one that's getting tired of the direction this discussion is taking. While I love the passion and debates that are present in these threads, the hypocrisy, groupthink and elitism drives me up the wall.

 

[jlsHouston]

true but they get interaction regardless of a signed piece of paper...plus in my opinion if they want longer interaction, that is what some of the character meals can do

I don't hear people complaining about Buzz stamping their book and loss of interaction there

is it better to get 10 people through with longer interaction and a signed piece of paper or 100 with shorter interaction and a stamped autograph? I don't know

I think this is a pretty good idea. Most of the time the kiddos are not about the autograph book and how it is signed as much as they are about standing next to the character for the interaction. Even the photo part you are always having to say smile/look over here/stand closer... If the parents handed the books to the CM, the CM could even stamp them. I guess people would complain because it would be "less direct character involvement" but heck it would save a few minutes of each meet and greet.

 

[jlsHouston]

Show is supposed to come before Efficiency.

Well yes and mostly I agree with this...but shaving a few minutes off the time it takes to hand autograph books to characters and get the sigs might be a decent trade off.

 

[jlsHouston]

Haha I've come to the conclusion, that either the majority on this thread are childless, or they wish they were or they have the best well behaved kids out there! My kids were brats but my grandkids fall in that latter category. They hang the moon and stars in the sky. They are the reason I had children. But I am not sure if I would do a 60 minute wait on their behalf for a M&G with any character..much less the posted stand by times we've had since E&A showed up on the scene.

 

[WDWDad13]

I think this is a pretty good idea. Most of the time the kiddos are not about the autograph book and how it is signed as much as they are about standing next to the character for the interaction. Even the photo part you are always having to say smile/look over here/stand closer... If the parents handed the books to the CM, the CM could even stamp them. I guess people would complain because it would be "less direct character involvement" but heck it would save a few minutes of each meet and greet.

exactly... and we all know just from being on these boards it won't matter what Disney does...people will complain. You just can't make everyone happy... but I think we more people getting through lines faster to see their favorite characters will make more kids happy. I agree... I have a 5 yr old now and the autograph thing would mean just as much if it was stamped to show she had seen that character - then could even stamp it and put a sticker of the character on there too or something...kids would still love it

 

[bhg469]

Just spoke with a friend who is quite good with numbers. He said MK on Easter Sunday was dead ... like never getting much beyond 35,000 folks dead.

Ahhh truthful attendance numbers! Refreshing to hear honest reports.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

My first hunch is that's because it's Japan. Timeliness is essential in Japanese culture. The trains run like clockwork. Even the sushi restaurant by my work will get rid of your reservation if you don't confirm when they call the day before, or if you're more than 5-10 minutes late.

Glad to hear you liked TDR and Japan, though. My trip to Japan a few years ago - which included 2 days in TDR - was probably the best of my life. I went with my Japanese-speaking cousins and Aunt so I got some local flair to go along with all the touristy stuff I did.

I need to go back and spend more time in TDR and Tokyo itself. Two days wasn't enough.

That could be, but to have them start NOW... After it's been rolled out at WDW and they've started enforcing returns at DL... It makes me wonder what the plans are for Nextgen long-term over there. If I'm Iger, I'm pushing it like CRAZY to the OLC... Anything I can say that would get them to buy the system to implement, and help me recoup some of my losses on the WDW roll out.

Two days... I couldn't even justify the length of that flight for that!!

It was funny... When we checked in to the hotel, the lady did a double-take and said "I'm sorry... You stay here 13 days??"

My response... "Yes. Yes I do stay here 13 days."

 

[jlsHouston]

Glad I'm not the only one that's getting tired of the direction this discussion is taking. While I love the passion and debates that are present in these threads, the hypocrisy, groupthink and elitism drives me up the wall.

I agree, there are creeps and stalker, and there are plenty that like character interaction who are not creeps and stalkers. I like the characters and I am 52 years old. I don't care much for the M&G's but I love character dining.
I am ready to move on to what is happening today at MK by 7DWT does anyone know???
And I am ready to start guessing what @WDW1974 was alluding to about the big announcement or change.
Or we could talk about the alleged pedophiles at WDI .

 

[lazyboy97o]

I think this is a pretty good idea. Most of the time the kiddos are not about the autograph book and how it is signed as much as they are about standing next to the character for the interaction. Even the photo part you are always having to say smile/look over here/stand closer... If the parents handed the books to the CM, the CM could even stamp them. I guess people would complain because it would be "less direct character involvement" but heck it would save a few minutes of each meet and greet.

There is no rule requiring people to ask for autographs. Somebody in the family is asking for them.

 

[jlsHouston]

That could be, but to have them start NOW... After it's been rolled out at WDW and they've started enforcing returns at DL... It makes me wonder what the plans are for Nextgen long-term over there. If I'm Iger, I'm pushing it like CRAZY to the OLC... Anything I can say that would get them to buy the system to implement, and help me recoup some of my losses on the WDW roll out.

Two days... I couldn't even justify the length of that flight for that!!

It was funny... When we checked in to the hotel, the lady did a double-take and said "I'm sorry... You stay here 13 days??"

My response... "Yes. Yes I do stay here 13 days."

Did you stay at a Disney resort at TDL? Do they have disney resorts in TDL ?