-
Welcome to the WDWMAGIC.COM Forums!
Please take a look around, and feel free to sign up and join the community.
Time for the war to begin.
- Thread starter seascape
- Start date
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
Maybe so, but, that is hardly an uninterrupted chunk of land. There are homes and businesses all around it plus an infrastructure of streets and highways dissecting a whole lot of the land. Transportation would be a real challenge, not to mention expense to connect the pieces and have a coherent park or combination of parks setup. Would be interesting to see what they are actually able to do with that land and how much of it was purchased as part of a deal. You want this piece, you need to buy this piece as well. And what about Orlando Zoning? Do they have that in their pocket too.
bhg469
Well-Known Member
The point is that they are trying to make this happen. It sounds like it is very plausible at this point. @marni1971 indicated that they are thinking about transportation and I may be assuming but it doesn't sound like busses or gondolas which is a win. This is fantastic news and we should all hope it happens. It is good for competition and Disney needs to be kept on their toes. Everything that is happening good at WDW is directly the result of Universal blowing people minds with WWoHP
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
I wasn't trying to imply that they couldn't do something with it, but, it will come at an enormous expense that whether we like it or not, at some point has to be recouped. And that is before they even have a single attraction. Acres and Acres are going to be needed for parking (even with a parking garage) and some form of expensive transportation will be required.
I have been going to and enjoying Universal Orlando since it opened, so I am not against their expansion, but, lets get a grasp on reality here. Disney, thanks to one Walter Disney, has thousands of acres of paid for land. Universal will have spent millions and millions just to have a place to build, much less actually build attractions. They have a board of directors and the numbers have got to be positive and doable before they will authorize more and more expense. I went to Uni long before there was an IOA or a Harry potter. I saw no significant increase in people from one time to another. More overall, sure, but, with the exception of when it first opened, Harry Potter is hardly overwhelmed. I used to see bigger lines at the original Kong and Twister rides. I think that there is a limit to what Uni will spend no matter how many plans are on the table at the moment. They need the property to expand, that would naturally be the first step. After that is achieved, time will tell what they do with it and how soon they do it. Right now, whether or not it is easily recognizable, I believe it is the other way around. The threat of SWL is motivating Uni to at least look like it is responding in kind. They may do it and knock our socks off, but, it is going to be hard to find yet another IP with the following of Harry Potter or Star Wars.
bclane
Well-Known Member
I wonder if they’re considering Marvel for their expansion. They clearly don’t shy away from having multiple lands based on the same IP.
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
True but Disney now owns Marvel and the only IP's they have are the ones that they already have access too. I don't see many things they can do with that without just flat out duplicating everything. They already do enough of that. I can think of a few that are exactly the same with the exception of the characters. Spiderman and Transformers come to mind immediately. Different characters, but, it is hard to see a lot of difference in the physical rides and the experience at all.
They have some interesting ideas.
One I thought "that actually makes perfect sense”
Me too. 2008 was a ghost town compared to today.
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
I don't recall going in 2008, but, I do remember going in 2001 and it was packed. 2008 was the year I took my whole extended family to WDW for a week. Didn't have time for Uni that week. I only go in the winter and every time I have gone there it was about the same level of admissions by the looks of things. I never go in the summer and the closest I have skimmed that season at all was in April and once in September. Maybe by 2008 it had lost a lot of it's shine, even IOA was almost 10 years old by then. However, I went in February 2017 and didn't have a crowded feel at all. Wait times without the "special pass" was quite reasonable. Even at Harry Potter. I did leave that line because it was stalled due to a breakdown, but, other then that no problem at all. I think my longest wait was at Shrek.
Conversely, we've been going in the same time frame for 11 years now and have seen a year on year increase. Sometimes a little too much!
bclane
Well-Known Member
I’m not sure which Marvel characters they have access to, but I would think a super immersive land featuring some of them would be a huge draw. What they have at IoA is fun but nothing compared to what they could really do (the Spider-Man ride itself being the exception of course). Toss that in with a heavy dose of Nintendo, another Potterverse land (maybe Fantastic Beasts), something from their classic monsters or the Dark Universe (if they could ever figure out how to make that work), some DreamWorks/Illuminations stuff, something from Syfy...The Expanse would be fun for me but probably not a huge draw. Anyway, it’s gonna be exciting to see what they come up with that’s for sure!
EricsBiscuit
Well-Known Member
How do theme parks sustain an increasing number of guests if they don't open something new every year. I know TB had some ideas but I don't know where the speech is.
In Universals case they had the capacity but not the guests to use it.
Once guests come and enjoy what they see they'll come again and tell their friends too.
And advertise.
And exploit a greater disposal income of the target demographic. And cheaper airfares.
bhg469
Well-Known Member
Xmen would be a perfect property. Disney doesnt own the movie rights but Universal could make some cool attractions and I dont see Disney Ever getting to make their own moveis.
Last edited:
bclane
Well-Known Member
I’m imagining a super cool X-Men ride where you end up in the Danger Room fighting Sentinels along side some of our favorite heroes. With that they could have any setting they wanted, past present or future. The Mansion could look iconic in the park too. I hope Uni is at least considering this.
smile
Well-Known Member
bclane
Well-Known Member
I’d try it at least once.
brb1006
Well-Known Member
I remember Universal Orlando didn't get any widespread commercials before the existence of Harry Potter unless you grew up in Florida at those times. These days it's more common to see Universal ads then it did back in 2004. I remember getting a Florida planning video from 2004 which was the only exposure to the existence of Universal Theme Parks. That should also tell you how much of an impact Harry Potter did with Universal.
brb1006
Well-Known Member
Still looking forward to the closure of Shrek.
They had a huge pre opening and opening advertising blitz in 1990; I still have some of the paperwork. In 1999 they did the same with IOA and the wider resort but it massively backfired. It was their New Coke. Naming the whole resort Universal Escape is one of advertisings lessons in how not to do it.
brb1006
Well-Known Member
How long did Universal Orlando had the "Universal Studios Escape" name? Because I remember Universal added Orlando sometime in the early 2000's. Also can you go into more info on why Universal Escape wasn't well received for a while? Because I remember seeing this commercial for the then new Islands Of Adventure (Seuss Landing) and seeing the name "Universal Escape" while seeing characters from Dr Seuss felt so bizarre.
Last edited: