The Spirited Seventh Heaven ...

[RSoxNo1]

Thought so.

What is surprising is that he has the FP+ percentage correct. I had previously thought it to be in the 60-65% range but received info recently that showed me that distribution was 70% on legacy Fastpass.

 

[BrianLo]

Anyone who believes a Star Wars announcement is coming in the next 6-9 months needs to put the blue milk down and wake up to some serious reality.

Oh, very interesting responses on SW at DLR. One (more?) of you may have just nailed it. Here's a few hints: 1.) it isn't going to DCA; 2.) The subs look like they are totally safe in the current plan.

Sweet, so 10 months from now then!? (Just kidding... we'll be lucky if they do more than a light tease at D23 again - nothing of substance until after VII releases).

Based on this: Innoventions, Buzz, Toon Town and Autotopia seem the only conceivable candidates (likely a combination of two). I know Matterhorn was thrown out there, but you did say at least some people would be happy, and I can't imagine anyone would be happy with the Matterhorn going. In the end I'm rather glad they decided to keep the subs, it's still a pretty/mostly functional area compared to the four I just mentioned.

Was that the Frozen soundtrack for sale at the register of my Starbucks? Sadly, yes.

I'm unfortunately addicted to Starbucks, and I started collecting their city mugs since I really don't buy much of anything when travelling. They are something that "match" and I can get from a wide variety of locales... all of which is to say I've seen Frozen for sale in many, many locations worldwide. It was at my local Starbucks in Canada probably as long as six months ago up until I left.

I know I have teased this, but I would still expect a MAJOR announcement on projects in Asia in the near future. If I knew exactly when, then I would say it, but I don't.

Finally, after being told repeatedly that DL's new night parade would ''differ substantially'' from HKDL's upcoming Paint the Night Parade, it would appear that they will be very, very, very similar.

I very much appreciate the updates on Asia and wait with baited breath!

Cloning is always unfortunate, but a parade doesn't really bother me. I'm surprised it doesn't bug the HK government though, they seem sticklers about getting everything to be exclusive these days.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Sweet, so 10 months from now then!? (Just kidding... we'll be lucky if they do more than a light tease at D23 again - nothing of substance until after VII releases).

Based on this: Innoventions, Buzz, Toon Town and Autotopia seem the only conceivable candidates (likely a combination of two). I know Matterhorn was thrown out there, but you did say at least some people would be happy, and I can't imagine anyone would be happy with the Matterhorn going. In the end I'm rather glad they decided to keep the subs, it's still a pretty/mostly functional area compared to the four I just mentioned.



I'm unfortunately addicted to Starbucks, and I started collecting their city mugs since I really don't buy much of anything when travelling. They are something that "match" and I can get from a wide variety of locales... all of which is to say I've seen Frozen for sale in many, many locations worldwide. It was at my local Starbucks in Canada probably as long as six months ago up until I left.



I very much appreciate the updates on Asia and wait with baited breath!

Cloning is always unfortunate, but a parade doesn't really bother me. I'm surprised it doesn't bug the HK government though, they seem sticklers about getting everything to be exclusive these days.

Maybe if in exchange of exclusivity, we could get a pair of pandas for ten years?

 

[BrianLo]

But still… Nobody in this town is willing to call Universal out for not being able to get it together with that attraction

The trumpeting of Gringott's Wait times as a measurement of success and the defence of Hogwarts Express' popularity confounds me. Since when respectively did terrible Ops/Capacity become a good thing, and great Ops/Capacity become something that needs to be apologized for.

 

[danlb_2000]

Maybe if in exchange of exclusivity, we could get a pair of pandas for ten years?

I like Pandas.

 

[Quinnmac000]

I wouldn't be surprised if its Toon Town that goes away.

 

[PhotoDave219]

For the record, I am not starting or resurrected a "pandas to DAK" rumor. That's just not reasonable with current management.

I *AM* saying that giant panda's at DAK would bring a boatload of attendance & much needed revenue.

It won't happen tho.

 

[BrianLo]

Maybe if in exchange of exclusivity, we could get a pair of pandas for ten years?

WDW would actually have to build/copy something then...

Shanghai should have netted the Pandas though, and it's Shanghai that HK mostly cares about.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

I respect your criticism, and appreciate having readers keep me honest, but we'll have to agree to disagree as to whether I was being "intentionally misleading." The bottom line is that today's statistic supports the likelihood that one or both Uni parks will surpass a WDW park in attendance, which is a big deal for this market. I apologize if you didn't appreciate my way of expressing it, but I hope those 14 words didn't ruin the entire 750+ word piece for you.

It is a fun little tidbit that is not at all misleading, only to people who use their fingers and toes to count stuff and so are left hopelessly confused for ten minutes while figuring out its meaning, only to mistake their confusion with that of the general reader.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Spirited Thursday Musings:

Walt Disney himself wouldn't be allowed to work for the company. He'd be thrown out on his .

Get that through your thick heads when you justify the Walmarting, the quarter to quarter mentality, the making Wall Street happy as Main Street USA continues its theme of Disney outlet mall gone bad, the rotting of wholesale areas, the neglect of others, the seven years of Disco Yeti etc. Get that YOU and your defending of this crap is why we all suffer with it.

Walt Disney wouldn't be allowed to be the visionary he was today and all of the toads who sit back and justify it are certainly part of the problem. More so than the Lifestylers and BRAND advocates and the DPB team.

Surprisingly, I agree that Walt wouldn't be allowed in his own park anymore. Different times, different mindsets. However, if we are to get it through our thick heads, then you and your pack of whiners should get through yours that no matter what you say, or how long you complain nothing, no matter how much influence you think one person has, is going to change it until it all comes to a head. Surely, if Walt himself wouldn't have any influence on it, no one, and I mean no one, on this board is going to make a dent.

So if we defend a Disney park because it isn't exactly a ghetto, then it doesn't make anymore difference then you criticizing it. It is a worthless exercise in wall talking. You can get your feathers all in a ruffle, it doesn't matter. You cannot on one hand say that you are trying to get your message across and at the same time give them the money that Wall Street so treasures. As long as the money keeps rolling in, they will continue to run the parks however they see fit.

Take it from someone in his mid 60's, life is too short to fight a losing battle constantly. Many enjoy Disney for what it is and do not have the time or the energy to constantly look back to what it was. It is what it is. If you can handle that then you spend your money and experience it. If you don't you find some other enjoyable place to spend it. You know that I don't always defend Disney. I have written a number of things about how I see them as slipping. I don't defend them always, but, I realize that I am powerless as one individual to make even a modicum of difference with my opinion. Unless, you have some snapshots of Iger and a goat, then you are also powerless and as you so sweetly put it... get that through your thick head. And I mean that in the nicest way possible.

 

[TeriofTerror]

I'm just going to say that while I agree with some of the above that I also firmly believe JL is the closest thing to Walt this company has. Animation would be completely rudderless without him now and what he and Pixar have brought to WDFA. In addition when he has the time and is allowed to be a big part of WDI, you wind up with a masterpiece like Cars Land.

He has five boys, a wife and a vineyard and there is only so much one man can do. Honestly, he is stretched far too thin these days as is, which is why Pixar's last three films haven't been nearly as good as all the ones that came out from 1995-2010.

I once made the same comparison regarding JL and Walt to a CM I met at a corporate training seminar. He replied that it was funny I said that, as Diane Disney Miller had once told him that JL reminded her more of her father than anyone she had ever met.

 

[StageFrenzy]

I do think the overlong sky battle was a whiff. I've seen to much of that in movies lately, with the SPACE and planetary defenses why couldn't they have the show down a little higher. Like in SPACE! I'm tired of seeing cityscapes being destroyed by flailing superheros and ships. When was the last time we had some good space dog fighting?

 

[Soarin' Over Pgh]

I wouldn't be surprised if its Toon Town that goes away.

I would be ok with this.

Or Tomorrowland turning into a true space port.

Of course, adding without subtracting from the park is always preferable, but Tomorrowland really is an ugly little beastie. It could use some love.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

R2'sD2oon Spin?

 

[ParentsOf4]

However, if we are to get it through our thick heads, then you and your pack of whiners should get through yours that no matter what you say, or how long you complain nothing, no matter how much influence you think one person has, is going to change it until it all comes to a head.

Now I really don't understand you.

Every change starts with one voice, with others joining in until the sound cannot be ignored.

Some times it takes years, even decades.

So, when you write "you and your pack of whiners should get through yours that no matter what you say, or how long you complain nothing, no matter how much influence you think one person has, is going to change it until it all comes to a head", exactly how is it supposed to "come to a head" if everyone remains silent?

Successful business don't wait for customers to leave before listening. Successful businesses listen to paying customers before they become former customers.

Corporate Disney would be wise to pay attention to what's being written, especially on threads such as these which contain some of WDW's most faithful customers.

When loyal customers start to complain in large enough numbers, it's time for change.

In WDW's case, the change doesn't have to be some earthshattering event like a 5th Gate. Sometimes the change is a bit more subtle, like ticket prices going up only 4% this year (instead of the 7% from the last 3 years), like Disney Dining Plan increasing 4.6% (instead of the 20% in 2012/2013), like Iger stating that an expanded Star Wars presence is coming to the parks, like credible rumors that the Yeti is finally going to get fixed.

Sometimes change is slow but it seems to me that corporate Disney is listening.

 

[doctornick]

I respect your criticism, and appreciate having readers keep me honest, but we'll have to agree to disagree as to whether I was being "intentionally misleading." The bottom line is that today's statistic supports the likelihood that one or both Uni parks will surpass a WDW park in attendance, which is a big deal for this market. I apologize if you didn't appreciate my way of expressing it, but I hope those 14 words didn't ruin the entire 750+ word piece for you.

I don't think that it supports that likelihood at all -- and I think that is why people are calling you out on it. How many people ride a particular ride has only a tangential relationship with the total number of folks in the park.

I'm not saying that one or both Uni parks won't surpass a WDW park in attendance in the near future. And it obviously would be a big deal if it did. But comparing a ridership number for a single ride to the turnstile count for a park isn't particularly relevant to that.

 

[Mike S]

Sometimes change is slow but it seems to me that corporate Disney is listening.

Hope you're right.

 

[Jennifer66]

Now I really don't understand you.

Every change starts with one voice, with others joining in until the sound cannot be ignored.

Some times it takes years, even decades.

So, when you write "you and your pack of whiners should get through yours that no matter what you say, or how long you complain nothing, no matter how much influence you think one person has, is going to change it until it all comes to a head", exactly how is it supposed to "come to a head" if everyone remains silent?

Successful business don't wait for customers to leave before listening. Successful businesses listen to paying customers before they become former customers.

Corporate Disney would be wise to pay attention to what's being written, especially on threads such as these which contain some of WDW's most faithful customers.

When loyal customers start to complain in large enough numbers, it's time for change.

In WDW's case, the change doesn't have to be some earthshattering event like a 5th Gate. Sometimes the change is a bit more subtle, like ticket prices going up only 4% this year (instead of the 7% from the last 3 years), like Disney Dining Plan increasing 4.6% (instead of the 20% in 2012/2013), like Iger stating that an expanded Star Wars presence is coming to the parks, like credible rumors that the Yeti is finally going to get fixed.

Sometimes change is slow but it seems to me that corporate Disney is listening.

Well said! To paraphrase Maragret Mead, "Never doubt a small group of committed individuals can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

 

[PhotoDave219]

I do think the overlong sky battle was a whiff. I've seen to much of that in movies lately, with the SPACE and planetary defenses why couldn't they have the show down a little higher. Like in SPACE! I'm tired of seeing cityscapes being destroyed by flailing superheros and ships. When was the last time we had some good space dog fighting?

1977.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Now I really don't understand you.

Every change starts with one voice, with others joining in until the sound cannot be ignored.

Some times it takes years, even decades.

So, when you write "you and your pack of whiners should get through yours that no matter what you say, or how long you complain nothing, no matter how much influence you think one person has, is going to change it until it all comes to a head", exactly how is it supposed to "come to a head" if everyone remains silent?

Successful business don't wait for customers to leave before listening. Successful businesses listen to paying customers before they become former customers.

Corporate Disney would be wise to pay attention to what's being written, especially on threads such as these which contain some of WDW's most faithful customers.

When loyal customers start to complain in large enough numbers, it's time for change.

In WDW's case, the change doesn't have to be some earthshattering event like a 5th Gate. Sometimes the change is a bit more subtle, like ticket prices going up only 4% this year (instead of the 7% from the last 3 years), like Disney Dining Plan increasing 4.6% (instead of the 20% in 2012/2013), like Iger stating that an expanded Star Wars presence is coming to the parks, like credible rumors that the Yeti is finally going to get fixed.

Sometimes change is slow but it seems to me that corporate Disney is listening.

Side side note..... I was a part of the Disney Dining Experience as far back as 04. I did not renew Tables in Wonderland as I finally had enough of restrictions, shrinking menus and increasing prices. Just has enough of it.