The Spirited Seventh Heaven ...

[PhotoDave219]

True - and in a way understandable I suppose. A vacation in WDW is a major expense, so I guess that means doing as much as you possibly can to get your money's worth. I'll take a mood-setting queue any day thoough. Different strokes...

Guests don't know what they want beyond they want to be entertained and escape. Adding hoops to the situation (MM+, FP+, ADRs) just makes things worse. The lack of reinvestments have made things difficult for the guests... their expectations are high in the sky and they find themselves disappointed with seeing the same things over and over again.

 

[wogwog]

You want me to say Disney rates on Deluxe hotels are overrated?

The Disney definition of Deluxe is inflated. I have stayed at true Deluxe hotels around the world. Disney falls very short of most of them even with GF.

 

[Nemo14]

Guests don't know what they want beyond they want to be entertained and escape. Adding hoops to the situation (MM+, FP+, ADRs) just makes things worse. The lack of reinvestments have made things difficult for the guests... their expectations are high in the sky and they find themselves disappointed with seeing the same things over and over again.

Do you think that the new expansion at Universal will make a difference in how people look at WDW, or will it just attract a different, more discriminating, crowd?

 

[lebeau]

Do you think that the new expansion at Universal will make a difference in how people look at WDW, or will it just attract a different, more discriminating, crowd?

I think more people will start checking out Universal and realize that there is an alternative. As Uni continues to grow and Disney continues to stagnate, people will shift their priorities. Instead of taking a Disney World trip, Universal will get more and more of their vacation dollar. The expansion is just a continuation of that shift.

Of course there will always be those who will be blindly loyal to Disney. There's no getting through to them.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Do you think that the new expansion at Universal will make a difference in how people look at WDW, or will it just attract a different, more discriminating, crowd?

No. I don't think it will change one bit. Guests will keep coming. Parents will go to Disney and the kids will only want to go to see Harry Potter.

 

[doctornick]

Society in general. Plus the mentality of "I spent $7000 on this vacation, we have to do it all".... theme park commandoes seem to be more the norm these days. Open to close, going all out.

Yeah, I think it is more a society thing, not caused by Disney. You certainly see it at Uni as well, facilitated by the Express Pass. There's this priority for "getting your money's worth" and "doing as much as possible" that permeates our society.

I agree with the previous point that started this line of discussion: DAK is a half day park if you want it to be a half day park. But there's a lot of details/walking around and enjoying that can be done if one wants to. I'm excited to see Diagon Alley have a lot of quality when it comes to just exploring.

 

[bhg469]

No. I don't think it will change one bit. Guests will keep coming. Parents will go to Disney and the kids will only want to go to see Harry Potter.

I agree, the mindset that only disney can entertain their kids is not going away.. even though the hotels are overpriced, the entertainment is dwindling and the attractions are constantly being cut back.

 

[bhg469]

Yeah, I think it is more a society thing, not caused by Disney. You certainly see it at Uni as well, facilitated by the Express Pass. There's this priority for "getting your money's worth" and "doing as much as possible" that permeates our society.

I agree with the previous point that started this line of discussion: DAK is a half day park if you want it to be a half day park. But there's a lot of details/walking around and enjoying that can be done if one wants to. I'm excited to see Diagon Alley have a lot of quality when it comes to just exploring.

I can't wait to explore it as well but the curse of the wildly successful attraction is that it will be years before any sort of exploration is possible le without bumping into thousands of people.

 

[Nemo14]

No. I don't think it will change one bit. Guests will keep coming. Parents will go to Disney and the kids will only want to go to see Harry Potter.

I agree, the mindset that only disney can entertain their kids is not going away.. even though the hotels are overpriced, the entertainment is dwindling and the attractions are constantly being cut back.

Sadly, I think you're right.

 

[mahnamahna101]

Yeah, I think it is more a society thing, not caused by Disney. You certainly see it at Uni as well, facilitated by the Express Pass. There's this priority for "getting your money's worth" and "doing as much as possible" that permeates our society.

I agree with the previous point that started this line of discussion: DAK is a half day park if you want it to be a half day park. But there's a lot of details/walking around and enjoying that can be done if one wants to. I'm excited to see Diagon Alley have a lot of quality when it comes to just exploring.

Although a really nice zoo with a couple rides isn't enough for me to pay $94 for a one day ticket... add in Pandora, River of Light, the nighttime safari and then another 5 attractions after that... it's a full day.

However, right now, even if you take your time and do every attraction (skipping Rafiki and Dinorama unless you've got kids) and take in every exhibit/trail, you've still got only a 3/4 day park (unless you take long breaks in between walking). You're gonna be done by 3 or 4 if you only focus on shows, the non-kid specific attractions (DINOSAUR, Kali, Everest, It's Tough to Be a Bug, Kilimanjaro, all of the trails, Festival of the Lion King)

 

[seascape]

I can't wait to explore it as well but the curse of the wildly successful attraction is that it will be years before any sort of exploration is possible le without bumping into thousands of people.

Regrettably both Disney and Universal want to make it impossible to not bump into others. I am sure everyone here can agree that the most important thing to both companies is filling the parks to rim so they can maximize profits and not care that guests are bumping into each other.

 

[dupac]

Sadly, I think you're right.

It's the whole "rite of passage" that was created. Even the Tanners and the Winslows went to WDW.

And this video.

 

[rael ramone]

What's the third that doesn't have wasted space?

The fountains outside.

 

[FigmentJedi]

It's the whole "rite of passage" that was created. Even the Tanners and the Winslows went to WDW.

And this video.

This one was always my favorite

 

[rael ramone]

Considering how long it takes them to build anything these days, I'd say the paving should be just about finished by 2017.

They'll only be able to pave one row (Disco Yeti 47 for example) per fiscal quarter.....

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

The Disney definition of Deluxe is inflated. I have stayed at true Deluxe hotels around the world. Disney falls very short of most of them even with GF.

Does this not scream deluxe to you?
The iHome Ipod dock... easily worth an additional $120 per night alone!

 

[articos]

Respectfully, additional retail space in DTD does not represent improvements to the theme parks. Essentially, Disney is taking their existing mall and making it bigger. I suspect most of us already have several malls closer to home.

Iger and Rasulo build timeshares and stores because they can tie it directly to revenue. They don't 'get' theme parks.

Projects such as road improvements generally are lumped under capital maintenance. These projects are counted as capital expenditures (capex) but are expenditures needed to keep the facilities operational.

In 2013, Disney spent $2.1B on capex. Most of that (at least 2/3) was on Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment (FF&E) or capital maintenance. P&R revenue was at $14B. In other words, Disney spent 15% of revenue on capex.

For comparison, Eisner averaged over 25% before 9/11.

Last year, Universal's capex came in at 26%.

Organizations that are actually investing in their theme parks are spending north of 20%.

Iger and Rasulo are at 15%, with most of what could be considered true investment dollars this year being spent overseas in Shanghai.

Iger and Rasulo have never appreciated WDW's real potential. When it comes to WDW, they'd rather coast.

Worse, they've instilled and cultivate a management culture that is "get it done for the least amount you potentially can", including required maintenance and upkeep, and "quality doesn't really matter." And then no one's telling the entire truth of how good or bad anything is to their management, so no one knows the extent of the problems until it blows up in their faces.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Okay..... lets talk some Harry Potter details.

Dont discuss this stuff without putting the spoiler tag around your reply.... There are people who dont want to know.

Spoiler

Universal has taken the Disney RFID from the lunch rush at Be Our Guest and applied it to the Leaky Cauldron. I was sitting down and asked my handler "Is this RFID or something" and half the creative team, eating in the corner, turned to pay attention to me. There's also a number on top of their candle as a backup.

There are interactive wands. I'm not sure of the price. This is similar to the concept of SOMK. First, it will be in both Hogsmeade and DA. Hogsmeade will have nine locations for kids to cast spells while DA will have 25... including 5 in Nocturne Alley. Classic wands that you purchased will not work with it but apparently if you've bought a wand in the past few months, it "should" work. Its an attraction in and of itself and dear god, this will hold kids in the land all day.

Nocturne Alley: Its air conditioned. Very dark. Very creepy. The shop has all the details you would expect from the dark side. Very easy to miss... unless you know what you're looking for.

Leaky Cauldon: Food is pretty good. Best quick service Ive had outside of a burger at FInnegans. It would have been nice to get a coke. Could have went for a beer, but WORK happens.

Horizont Alley & Carkitt Market have a roof. Yes, thats right.... there's a roof over guest areas to keep out the rain.

The shops. Holy crap there's a lot of them... and they sell everything. True to the books, this is a shopping palace, with everything the growing witch or wizard needs. From butter beer flavored ice cream to quiddich supplies, to wands, robes, and owls, its all there. The Weasley brothers joke shop is exactly what you would expect. The shops are bigger than the ones in Hogsmeade.... but not by much.

Did we mention Gringotts dollars, available in 10s and 20s and available to be used at any Universal store? You can exchange your hard earned cash at a 1:1 USD to Wizard Bucks ratio.

Hogsmeade Express: Far beyond what i would expect. A simple transport ride that tells a story. Kings cross is emmaculately recreated, down to the signs. You swipe your park ticket at the very beginning when you enter before going up the queue. There will be kiosks available for upgrading of tickets, purchasing of tickets, etc. Highly entertaining for what it is. Double edged sword tho: there's going to be a huge line for a simple four minute ride.

Gringotts: Hey, Animatronics. And they interact with you. The queue is a tad bland but it is a bank... so I guess thats rather accurate.

Ukrainian Ironbelly Dragon: This is a firebreathing beast that gives no warning before it roars. (It does not seem to operate in the thunder) Its big, its loud and it does have a wallet that says "Bad Mother F***er." Its the centerpiece of the land. Its the cookie, the weenie and something out of Michael Eisner's dreams for Sleeping Beauty's Castle in DLP.

The only thing that will hold this back, the only thing holding Universal back is their front line cast. They really need some training in guest service.

Thats my thoughts..... Remember, answer w/ a spoiler tag.

 

[SJN1279]

This is why I think universal needs to do a dark ride there that can appeal to the masses. Let's face it, FJ is pretty rough for those who are prone to motion sickness, Gringotts is reported to be slightly more tame but that could still be bad for a lot of people. A haunted mansion type ride exosting in that world could be epic, and I never use that word.

They had their chance when they were designing a Hogwarts attraction.

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

Okay..... lets talk some Harry Potter details.

Dont discuss this stuff without putting the spoiler tag around your reply.... There are people who dont want to know.

Spoiler

Universal has taken the Disney RFID from the lunch rush at Be Our Guest and applied it to the Leaky Cauldron. I was sitting down and asked my handler "Is this RFID or something" and half the creative team, eating in the corner, turned to pay attention to me. There's also a number on top of their candle as a backup.

There are interactive wands. I'm not sure of the price. This is similar to the concept of SOMK. First, it will be in both Hogsmeade and DA. Hogsmeade will have nine locations for kids to cast spells while DA will have 25... including 5 in Nocturne Alley. Classic wands that you purchased will not work with it but apparently if you've bought a wand in the past few months, it "should" work. Its an attraction in and of itself and dear god, this will hold kids in the land all day.

Nocturne Alley: Its air conditioned. Very dark. Very creepy. The shop has all the details you would expect from the dark side. Very easy to miss... unless you know what you're looking for.

Leaky Cauldon: Food is pretty good. Best quick service Ive had outside of a burger at FInnegans. It would have been nice to get a coke. Could have went for a beer, but WORK happens.

Horizont Alley & Carkitt Market have a roof. Yes, thats right.... there's a roof over guest areas to keep out the rain.

The shops. Holy crap there's a lot of them... and they sell everything. True to the books, this is a shopping palace, with everything the growing witch or wizard needs. From butter beer flavored ice cream to quiddich supplies, to wands, robes, and owls, its all there. The Weasley brothers joke shop is exactly what you would expect. The shops are bigger than the ones in Hogsmeade.... but not by much.

Did we mention Gringotts dollars, available in 10s and 20s and available to be used at any Universal store? You can exchange your hard earned cash at a 1:1 USD to Wizard Bucks ratio.

Hogsmeade Express: Far beyond what i would expect. A simple transport ride that tells a story. Kings cross is emmaculately recreated, down to the signs. You swipe your park ticket at the very beginning when you enter before going up the queue. There will be kiosks available for upgrading of tickets, purchasing of tickets, etc. Highly entertaining for what it is. Double edged sword tho: there's going to be a huge line for a simple four minute ride.

Gringotts: Hey, Animatronics. And they interact with you. The queue is a tad bland but it is a bank... so I guess thats rather accurate.

Ukrainian Ironbelly Dragon: This is a firebreathing beast that gives no warning before it roars. (It does not seem to operate in the thunder) Its big, its loud and it does have a wallet that says "Bad Mother F***er." Its the centerpiece of the land. Its the cookie, the weenie and something out of Michael Eisner's dreams for Sleeping Beauty's Castle in DLP.

The only thing that will hold this back, the only thing holding Universal back is their front line cast. They really need some training in guest service.

Thats my thoughts..... Remember, answer w/ a spoiler tag.

I'm curious, I saw a few reports of people praising the cast that they interacted with. Some saying that the cast really played up their parts. Do you think it is possible you had bad luck or are we talking all of UNI not just DA?