The Spirited Back Nine ...

[Next Big Thing]

Well when I think of deluxe top-of-the-line resorts… I do not think about Disney. I do not think about character breakfasts. I do not think about T-shirts and flip-flops in the lobby.

I think of luxury, dress codes, think Waldorf Astoria. Heck, I think 17th century Harris or the Romanovs in Russia before they were overthrown.

I think of true, high-end luxury. I think of Concerge, I think of being waited on hand and foot 24 hours a day.

And yes, that luxury includes a hot tub in my bathroom. It includes a king size bed and a giant television. Includes a balcony with a view.

Just sounds to me like through the magic of marketing and surveys, they are trying to redefine and quantify what luxury is.

Sounds like you just described the new Four Seasons if you ask me...

 

[Cody5294]

The soundtrack does not come out until the 18th. Much to my dismay

I went on iTunes to try to buy some of the songs and came across that. I don't think I've ever seen a soundtrack being released after the movie

 

[Cody5294]

It seems like a lot of Disney bloggers don't want to say that Big Hero 6 is better than Frozen just because they don't want to deal with the backlash or get on Disneys bad side

 

[doctornick]

Went to see Big Hero 6 tonight. It was truly a great movie. My kids loved it and laughed a lot throughout the movie. The Baymax character is excellent and provides so much humor.

Definitely worth seeing.

I thought, much like the better Pixar movies, that Big Hero 6 has elements that everyone from young children to adults could enjoy. It's a pretty good storyline that doesn't feel infantile, but has enough playful humor and good visuals that even young children can be captivated.

That said, I liked Wreck-It Ralph better (but I think WIR is criminally underrated).

 

[NearTheEars]

Ok, confession time. I went to the media night for Mickey's Very Scary Christmas Party Friday night. I had not been to the MK since 9/13/13 for the media night for MNSSHP. I have stated on these very boards that I only go to Disney when I get in for free. I gave up my AP in 2010.

We (DD14 and myself) arrived at the MK at 4:05pm. Everything around the entrance and train station end of Main Street U.S.A. was disappointingly spiffy and clean and what appeared to be freshly painted. Since I haven't ridden 7DMT yet we beelined it there. On the way I noticed that those MASSIVE wreath hangers look a lot better in person than in pictures. And at least the forced removal of the beloved swag Mickey wreaths resulted in a new overall redesign of the decorations.

We arrived at the 7DMT at 4:30, 70 min. Standby. So we skipped it. We went to UtS:JotLM. 10 min. Standby (walk on, actually). I had only ridden it twice, 2 years ago and felt I may have judged it harshly. Unfortunately, big parts of it are embarressingly bad. Some bits are amazing though. The little Sebastian AA in the last scene is totally BA. Anyway, back to 7DMT, 80 min. Standby. Starting to regret my earlier impatience. Skipped it again. Off to HM.

Almost everything in the HM interactive slap and splash play queue is broken. Thank you Almighty Tiki God.

We go watch the Ice Queen and Princess Adorkable ice up Cindy's shack. The script is idiotic, the visuals are epic. Moving on to get Panko bread crumb topped Mac n Cheese at Frier's Nook for DD14. Tasted exactly like bread crumb topped MaC. She enjoyed it. Just shy of $10 for an ice cream cup of MaC hurt my head. I got a pork shank at Gaston's. Another $10. But bein' a hillbilly, Pork Fat (bacon) is part of the Food Pyramid. Just above beans and below Bourbon. So ten bucks for a Pork Shank is doable and still gets 2 greasy thumbs up from me. I washed it down with a Coke the size of my head. And thanks guys for reminding me that I failed to get a bag of apple slices as a healthy side.

Moving on, I was quite disappointed about the recent change over to LED popcorn and accent lights because I had not yet been able to photograph a burned out bulb. Although the color temp isn't the same as the old incandescents, I don't believe Joe Sixpack from Somewhere, Upnorth will be storming city hall anytime soon.

After noshing, we swung by 7DMT again. Bingo! 40 min. Standby. We queued up. The queue is quite nice. We blew past the gem sorting. Most of the barrel projections weren't working. The theming is solid through out the queue. We boarded in 20 mins. The ride was exactly what I expected content wise. But I was pleasantly surprised that the attraction as a whole is more fun than I expected. So I have to fairly say the attraction exceeded my expectations.

Off to Space Mtn. 10 min. Standby. Pretty much a walk on. My daughter wanted to ride it again. It's too rough for me. I didn't enjoy it so I watched the horrible Christmas dance party thing in Tomorrowland while DD14 rode it again.

Straight across the hub to Jingle Cruise. Loved it. After everybody saying how minimal it is, my expectations were rock bottom. I thought it was good silly fun.

Pirates was next. It's Pirates. Half the stuff doesn't work. Or worse, works half way. Please fix the fire torches in the fire scene. They're embarrassing.

Then we left. 9pm sharp. I had to work at 4:30am Saturday. We didn't see the parade, celebrate the magic, or Holiday Wishes. We did stop by the media hospitality center and had plenty of hot chocolate and cookies. And saw Olaf (we didn't wait in the line for the pic).

I can't really review the event, but we had a good time. We did what we wanted. And the park does look better than last year. I'm still a long way from considering an AP again, but the overall condition seems to be improving.

Pretty much spot on from my observations each month. Except I don't really know what's not functioning in POTC since my first ride was in 2010.

The HM interactive stuff has been hit and miss all year. But recently, the books haven't worked at all.

 

[SJN1279]

I actually thought that Big Hero 6 was just okay. Most of the characters were underdeveloped, the humor fell flat, and it was a blatant ripoff of many recent Superhero films. However, Baymax was cool, and I LOVED the short that proceeded the movie. It may have been my favorite short from Disney/Pixar.

For me, Frozen was way better.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Sounds like you just described the new Four Seasons if you ask me...

Character buffet at the four season. No way.

 

[GrammieBee]

While it would be absolutely lovely and amazing if everything in the interactive que areas was always kept in working order, I can't, in good conscience, lay all of the fault on management or maintainance. It's easy to say what they should or could be doing if they would hire more people, spend more money, or whatever. However, given the fact of the shear number of people using the que area and that a certain percentage seem to be hell bent on destroying anything in their path, I hate to make that judgement. Something could be fixed and two hours later be broken again. That said, we would like to expect, somehow, for more of the interactives be kept in working order for longer periods of time.

Side note. This is not a problem at just Disney. You will find the same thing at park and museum exibits.

 

[Next Big Thing]

Character buffet at the four season. No way.

Only 2-3 days a week and it's very classy in comparison to disasters like Chef Mickey. Doesn't take away from the feel of the hotel at all.

While very expensive, they provide the proper amenities and service that you SHOULD get at a resort with deluxe pricing. I felt like we were on a cruise ship and we had a steward. We almost got to know our room keeper, he left us chocolates every day and seemed to genuinely care about our needs/wants. There is no WDW hotel where you will find that level of service unless you are paying absolutely obscene prices, and even then....

The pool was also great. Better than any WDW pool, almost a mini waterpark and was always very empty. Oh, and the rooms had lots of iPod/iPad integration. You could use an iPad mini to contact the front desk, call you room keeper, order room service, etc. The TVs were also much larger and on the scale of what i'd expect in a deluxe. And the view simply can't be beat in WDW anywhere. From pretty much all rooms you can see at least one park and from the room we had, we were able to see both Wishes and Illuminations at night.

 

[Stevek]

Big Hero 6, hmmm. Good, not great. Found most of the recent Disney Animation releases to be more enjoyable. I will say that I thought it was better than Pixar's Monsters 2 or Cars 2.

 

[ParentsOf4]

While it would be absolutely lovely and amazing if everything in the interactive que areas was always kept in working order, I can't, in good conscience, lay all of the fault on management or maintainance. It's easy to say what they should or could be doing if they would hire more people, spend more money, or whatever. However, given the fact of the shear number of people using the que area and that a certain percentage seem to be hell bent on destroying anything in their path, I hate to make that judgement. Something could be fixed and two hours later be broken again. That said, we would like to expect, somehow, for more of the interactives be kept in working order for longer periods of time.

Side note. This is not a problem at just Disney. You will find the same thing at park and museum exibits.

Yes, I agree that destructive behavior by some members of the general public is a problem all over, not just at WDW.

However, it also is not a new problem. You possibly might remember the "Keep America Beautiful" campaign of the 1970s. You might recall graffiti that was common on public places then too, such as NYC subways. I recall broken exhibits, vandalized rides, etc. in the 1960s and 1970s at places whose names did not start with 'Disney'. Human nature is no different today than it was 40 or 50 years ago.

The difference today is that corporate Disney has cut maintenance budgets and stopped trying to keep up with the destructive behavior at WDW.

Sorry for trotting this out once more but Walt Disney's words from over 50 years ago were relevant then and they still are relevant today:

"When I started on Disneyland, my wife used to say 'But why do you want to build an amusement park? They're so dirty.' I told her that was the point, mine wouldn't be."​

And also:

"Everybody thinks that Disneyland is a goldmine but we have had our problems. You've got to work it and know how to handle it. Even trying to keep that park clean is a tremendous expense. And those sharp-pencil guys tell you, 'Walt, if we cut down on maintenance, we'd save a lot of money.' But I don't believe in that. It's like any other show on the road; it must be kept clean and fresh."​

It takes effort to keep a public place clean and functional. In corporate Disney's case, they have to cough up the money and pay for it.

Instead, in just fiscal 2014 alone, Disney spent over $6.7 billion buying back its own stock. That's almost equal to the entire revenue collected at WDW in 2014. Disney easily can afford a couple of hundred million more to keep its global theme parks up to its old standards. They simply choose not to.

Corporate Disney leadership has priorities and those no longer include maintaining the theme parks to the standards that once were the envy of the industry.

 

[Ignohippo]

Big Hero 6, hmmm. Good, not great. Found most of the recent Disney Animation releases to be more enjoyable. I will say that I thought it was better than Pixar's Monsters 2 or Cars 2.

Wow. Really? I thought BH6 was amazing and absolutely on par with the recent WDA releases and the best of Pixar.

The lines between WDA and Pixar have become blurred to the point where it's almost silly to have them as separate companies anymore. When the same people are making story decisions and in charge of animation quality, it's really just a matter of who is pushing the buttons on the computer at this point.

Oh, and our family LOVES Monsters University. Not everything has to be a tear-jerker to be incredibly entertaining. We watched that movie hundreds of times and it still holds up.

On the other hand, PLANES 2 is a complete and utter disaster. I want my $20 and the hour that it took to watch it back. Horrible. How can a movie about planes fighting fires be SO boring and predictable? It's an embarrassment. Hard to believe the same company that put out Big Hero 6 could put out such garbage. It actually makes Cars 2 sen like a decent movie.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Big Hero Six was absolutely wonderful. Took the kids tonight. Go see it.

I really liked it. I'd put it ahead of Wreck it Ralph.

Spoiler

There is a major scene that is very similar to Body Wars.

 

[GoofGoof]

Character buffet at the four season. No way.

They are having a character breakfast on select days but I bet the food is better than Chef Mickeys. From the Four Seasons Press Release:

Ravello

Named for the Italian seaside town situated above the Amalfi coast, modern Italian cuisine is the specialty atRavello, the all-day dining restaurant at Four Seasons. Breakfast offerings include an omelet station and traditional breakfast favourites. Dinner offers fresh pizza and bread from the wood-burning oven, regionally influenced Italian specialties, and the open kitchen’s pasta bar. Ravello will offer a “Goofy & Pals” Disney Character Breakfast on Thursdays and Saturdays, and select Tuesdays during peak school break periods.

http://press.fourseasons.com/orland...rt-introduces-executive-chef-dining-concepts/

 

[ford91exploder]

Are rutabagas similar to turnips? Seriously, I have an honest question. What is the definition of a fanboi? I have a pretty good idea of what it means, but the word, or term, does not make a lot of sense. I am not trying to be clever.

Rutabaga's are similar to turnips they are sweeter though - not sweet but sweeter and a bit softer, I've tried turnip fries with same recipe but they are just blah, They need a touch of file (e is accented) powder to make them pop - but if you don't like spicy stay with Rutabaga and Beet fries.

 

[ford91exploder]

This thread is starting to de-evolve into I don't know what. Actually happens with most (not all) Spirit threads. I still fondly remember the WAWA and cheesesteak discussion. Mmmmmm.....cheesesteak...

Gino's Cheesesteak

 

[lazyboy97o]

While it would be absolutely lovely and amazing if everything in the interactive que areas was always kept in working order, I can't, in good conscience, lay all of the fault on management or maintainance. It's easy to say what they should or could be doing if they would hire more people, spend more money, or whatever. However, given the fact of the shear number of people using the que area and that a certain percentage seem to be hell bent on destroying anything in their path, I hate to make that judgement. Something could be fixed and two hours later be broken again. That said, we would like to expect, somehow, for more of the interactives be kept in working order for longer periods of time.

Side note. This is not a problem at just Disney. You will find the same thing at park and museum exibits.

Or upper management and Walt Disney Imagineering could have listened to Operations' concerns that they'd end up more broken than functional and designed accordingly or not bothered. But of course they were also anticipating longer waits at a massive people eater so they had to do something as a distraction.

 

[GoofGoof]

Gino's Cheesesteak

When I went to that part of South Philly I usually picked Pat's over Geno's. At 2am after bars closed it was usually quite an entertaining scene. Better than going to the zoo.

 

[BrerJon]

It takes effort to keep a public place clean and functional. In corporate Disney's case, they have to cough up the money and pay for it.

Even if guests are hell-bent on breaking every effect in an interactive queue, Disney should have a maintenance CM permanently on duty for the sole purpose of queue repairs, going through the line several times a day to keep note and, where possible, make on the fly fixes, then in third shift everything should be restored for the next day. The cost of a couple of Cast Members extra and repair supplies is far less than they'll lose due to damaged reputation for shoddy upkeep.

Whether it's fixing things like the projections in the Dwarf barrels failing, or sound speakers being muffled, which aren't caused by guests, or repairing instances where guests have broken things off walls, there needs to be someone who is accountable and their number one job description is for everything to be working, or if not there better be a damn good excuse.

 

[GoofGoof]

Even if guests are hell-bent on breaking every effect in an interactive queue, Disney should have a maintenance CM permanently on duty for the sole purpose of queue repairs, going through the line several times a day to keep note and, where possible, make on the fly fixes, then in third shift everything should be restored for the next day. The cost of a couple of Cast Members extra and repair supplies is far less than they'll lose due to damaged reputation for shoddy upkeep.

Whether it's fixing things like the projections in the Dwarf barrels failing, or sound speakers being muffled, which aren't caused by guests, or repairing instances where guests have broken things off walls, there needs to be someone who is accountable and their number one job description is for everything to be working, or if not there better be a **** good excuse.

Agreed. We have been talking for a while here about the need for a full time quality control group at WDW with real authority. With a resort that large it would be very practical to have full time group dedicated to just that. I think it would make a significant difference. The key is having full authority to make the fixes.