Storytime with Belle...That's it?!?

[Alektronic]

Yep, it started with the first height restricted attraction. @marni1971 could probably answer that bit of trivia as I have no idea. But I'm sure there were height restrictions in Walt's Magic Kingdom of the 50's.

Height restrictions are for SAFETY, has nothing to do with the age of the child.

 

[doctornick]

I knew it existed. Right over by the castle. I just didn't think they'd need such an elaborate set up for a dressed up version of a preschool library class.

And you can continue to ignore this much as it seems you ignored the previous incarnation. Why does it bother you that Disney decided to take character greetings to a whole new level of immersion? To me, that's Disney doing what it should be doing -- setting the bar for theme park standards.

Lots of people can't handle riding Space Mountain, but I doubt that many of them say "I can't believe Disney wasted money on this when they could have build an Omnimover that everyone could enjoy".

 

[MickeyPeace]

Who's to say we won't enjoy the area? I never said we wouldn't enjoy it. I just said that I don't think it really justifies the massive ticket price increase that will come with it. While we will indeed enjoy it, we won't as much as we could have had a ride/attraction that included adults was tossed into the mix. Be Our Guest and Gaston's tavern will be awesome, but they also come at the expense of our wallet, in addition to the price increase to get into the park.

This is what all of the angry people in this thread aren't quite grasping. Thanks for putting it clearly.

 

[prfctlyximprct]

And you can continue to ignore this much as it seems you ignored the previous incarnation. Why does it bother you that Disney decided to take character greetings to a whole new level of immersion? To me, that's Disney doing what it should be doing -- setting the bar for theme park standards.

Lots of people can't handle riding Space Mountain, but I doubt that many of them say "I can't believe Disney wasted money on this when they could have build an Omnimover that everyone could enjoy".

I'm not ignoring anything. If this was labeled as a meet and greet, maybe I wouldn't be so disappointed. But it's a new attraction. And it is not impressive.

 

[Skyway]

Those complaining that Disney built something for visitors different than themselves kinda reminds me of this girl

 

[MickeyPeace]

Those complaining that Disney built something for visitors different than themselves kinda reminds me of this girl

Ha ha hot mess.

 

[wannab@dis]

Height restrictions are for SAFETY, has nothing to do with the age of the child.

You don't say. But that doesn't change the fact there are many attractions that are not for kids. So, the argument fails completely.

 

[Alektronic]

You don't say. But that doesn't change the fact there are many attractions that are not for kids. So, the argument fails completely.

But what does that have to with height restrictions then?

 

[Pixiedustmaker]

Why does it bother you that Disney decided to take character greetings to a whole new level of immersion? To me, that's Disney doing what it should be doing -- setting the bar for theme park standards.

Lots of people can't handle riding Space Mountain, but I doubt that many of them say "I can't believe Disney wasted money on this when they could have build an Omnimover that everyone could enjoy".

The mountain attractions aren't for everybody, I've ridden Space many times, but I do find it a bit too fast for my taste, and hence don't ride it every time. But for many kids, the mountains are a rite of passage, i.e. being tall enough to ride Splash or Space. The restriction is physical, i.e. the height restriction or the speed of the ride.

When looking at the rides at the other end of the spectrum, such as the Storybook Land Canal boat type rides, it is perfectly acceptable for adults to enjoy these attractions, even without kids in tow. As a single adult male, I can ride Snow White, Peter Pan, all of this stuff, without a cast member bating an eye lash.

Remember, Walt didn't want a roller coaster in his park, only after others pressured him was the Matterhorn built. Walt wanted 100% of the attractions to be 100% enjoyable by the whole family, letting roller coaster rides in his park was a concession.

I think the issue with the Belle's is that it is sort of new for Disney to build an attraction which would be awkward for adult guests without little kids to enjoy, even on Casey Jr. adults can enjoy the ride without raising eyebrows.

Remember, there are also a lot of families at Disney with teenagers and mom and dad who would feel uncomfortable in such an attraction, as well as plenty of folks without kids who would feel uncomfortable lining up for such an attraction. Yes, Walt had Tinker Bell walking around talking with guests, but nobody felt excluded, with this Belle M&G more guests are, in essence, "unwelcomed" than welcomed by the attraction, so it is a sore point for folks to see money being lavished on something they would feel uncomfortable experiencing without little kids.

What percentage of guests have small kids and won't feel awkward on the attraction? Maybe 25%? even 10%? Much lower than for the coasters, IMHO, which most guests can enjoy if they want to. Though sadly, the coasters do divide families, my mom won't ride them and spends time alone while we went on the mountains as kids . . .

If Magic Kingdom had a lot of attractions like Disneyland, then this wouldn't be such a big issue for some, especially since it may be a couple decades until something new is added.

Anyway, that should answer the question of why some guests are unhappy that maybe only 15% of guests are "welcomed" to enjoy this attraction, at least based on the videos of families with little kids . . .

 

[TyrantBoss]

Well....what a bit of response I have prompted.

Let me address a few quick points.
1) Yes...height restrictions are not about age...they are about safety. If you are a midget or dwarf and are an older person the same height restrictions apply to you. Not because you are a kid, but because you are too short to ride the ride safely.

2) Do you want to talk about a ride that was geared toward adults. Does anyone remember Alien Encounter? It was a fun, scary, thrilling and excellent attraction. It had warning signs and warning announcements everywhere warning parents that it may be "too intense for children". Yet....the mommies who think everything should be for their kids brought their kids on the ride and it scared the hell out of them.

So then the mommies cried and complained to Disney...and what happens? We lose an excellent Alien Encounter attraction to a lame and sad Stitch's great escape. So now instead of a good adult level scare....we have Stitch sneeze on us and burp in our faces...because your little rug rats think it is funny and cute.

And I agree...kindergarten story telling time is not worth my ticket prices going up. Storytime with Belle looks disappointing.

Bring it.

 

[Patricia Melton]

Is the voice of the wardrobe done by the same drag queen, I mean person, who voiced the Poetess Pock character in the Haunted Mansion queue?

I think that is Joann Worley from Laugh-in.

That's not a "drag queen" as you called her: she is a talented comedienne.

 

[Patricia Melton]

I say from now on, whenever someone is extremely negative and being downright unpleasant, that everyone should just post pictures of puppies in response to them...they definitely cheered me up!

This is kind of a brilliant idea.

I am going to use that for everything and will keep a folder of cute puppy pics for just such a use.

 

[marni1971]

Yep, it started with the first height restricted attraction. @marni1971 could probably answer that bit of trivia as I have no idea. But I'm sure there were height restrictions in Walt's Magic Kingdom of the 50's.

I'd imagine it was The Matterhorn.

 

[SirLink]

Our resident insiders can correct me if I am wrong, but I don't think that was ever anything more then fan made rumors, I don't believe there was ever a plan within Disney to have a BatB ride in FLE.

I'm no insider but the only BATB attraction that has been planned for a Fantasyland was for phase 2 @ DLP/EDL they had proposed building an Enchanted Tiki-like show featuring characters from BATB.

 

[danlb_2000]

But what does that have to with height restrictions then?

Because a ride with a hight restriction prevents and entire age range of guests from riding it (along with some outiers in other age ranges). The assertion people are making is that Walt intended for every attraction to be enjoyable by every member of the family. If this was truely the case they wouldn't have designed rides that were so intense that every age couldn't ride them safely.

 

[danlb_2000]

Walt's dream of a place where parents and children could have fun together has come so far, hasn't it?

Yes it has! It's nice to see a M&G where the parents can actually get involved with the children as they act out part of the story, instead of just standing there while thier child get's an autograph. I think this is a great way to to M&G's. I think a lot of kids will have better memories of this experience then riding on a dark ride.

 

[devoy1701]

And you can continue to ignore this much as it seems you ignored the previous incarnation. Why does it bother you that Disney decided to take character greetings to a whole new level of immersion? To me, that's Disney doing what it should be doing -- setting the bar for theme park standards.

Lots of people can't handle riding Space Mountain, but I doubt that many of them say "I can't believe Disney wasted money on this when they could have build an Omnimover that everyone could enjoy".

Some people think that it's ridiculous that Disney has made it OK/Acceptable to have to wait in line and treat Meet-n-Greets as an attraction. I for one do miss the sponteneity of being able to catch a character walking about and pose for a picture on the spot. But overall I'm "meh" about it. I hope the tech they use makes it to some other attractions around the parks.

 

[danlb_2000]

Personally, I think giving the kids the chance to meet a character isn't something you should ever have to line up for. It's too late to turn back now, but I yearn for the day when dressed-up characters are merely an enhancement to the atmosphere, not an excuse for more switchbacks and gift stands.

So it's ok to make kids wait in line to see an animatronic version of a character in a ride, but it's not ok to make them wait in line to meet the "real" version of a character?

 

[RSoxNo1]

Walt's dream of a place where parents and children could have fun together has come so far, hasn't it?

You're right, Walt never made rides with height requirements. I can't stand the "What Walt would have wanted" arguments, more often than not they're unfounded.

 

[devoy1701]

You're right, Walt never made rides with height requirements. I can't stand the "What Walt would have wanted" arguments, more often than not they're unfounded.

I don't think Walt would have appreciated the idea that you think people thinking what he would have wanted are unfounded beliefs.