Unpopular Disney world opinions

[jloucks]

Ratatouille is too tame and a bit boring.

Dinosaur and Bugs should not be replaced. AK should have gotten those attractions as additions.

Festival of the Lion King is my least favorite stage show.

The shortened Nemo show is stupid and we lost the best elements of the show when it was cut.

Hollywood Studios should have stayed themed to making movies to make it not universal studios-esque.

I wish Disney was still creative enough to make original attractions with original characters/plots like Cranium Command, Haunted Mansion, and Imagination.

Guardians doesnt fit in Epcot.

Cars doesnt fit in Magic Kingdom.

I wish Lucasfilm had its own theme park (Im not big on Lucasfilm movies so I kinda wish it had its own park so I can ignore it)

Star Tours is worse than Mission Space

Tron is ugly and too short

Monsters Inc Land going where it is is insanely stupid

I wish we had more/new animatronic shows. I love AA shows.

Its a Small World should move to Epcot and the new version should be insanely grand

I hate Indiana Jones as an IP in AK

They should could rid of the TTC and pave the lagoon into a parking lot because leaving the park at night if you drive is insane.

The skyway is tacky.

Disney Springs is outside of my tax bracket and deemed worthless to me now

Every other Disney resort around the world is better than WDW

...just for fun...

Agree
Strongly Agree
Disagree
Suprised you think that
No opinion or insufficient knowledge

 

[UNCgolf]

The theming is top-notch. That giant (fake) tree in the park is a sight to behold. The Avatar movie zone is very memorable as well.

Lots of parks and zoos do have safari-like attractions. The Dallas Zoo has a super cool monorail that goes through the animal zones—almost as cool as the AK Safari. It is certainly unique. Sharkarosa has a robust Safari as well (but the animals are not all that exotic). That said, they have a Cobra show that will wake you right up. Fossil Rim Wildlife Center has a massive 7+ mile animal safari with moderately exotic animals and nice trucks. I just realized I am a bit of a controlled safari connoisseur. I will say tho, AK's is slightly better than all of them. My whole point isn't that AK sucks, not at all, but that it isn't in a class of its own. All of the other WDW parks are better, as are Uni parks. ...not water parks, those don't count.

So, if anybody is ever in Texas, I have rated some of the Safari Zoos/Parks around here. You can use the AK ranking as a reference point. ...my opinion, of course, your experience may vary.

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Dallas Zoo & Monorail
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Sharkarosa Safari and Nature Sanctuary
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Fossil Rim Wildlife Center Safari
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AK Zoo, Park & Safari

Oh sure, many of them have safari type rides, but they're generally not close to the level of what's offered at AK in terms of the animals and the theming. They're not really comparable experiences to me (plus a number of places that offer safaris are actually bad places that really shouldn't have animals, although obviously not all of them).

It's all subjective, though. As I said, I could spend almost a full day at DAK whereas I can do everything worth doing to me at IoA and USF in a single day. I think it's a much better park than either. I also think it's a much better park than current DHS (current DHS is improved over DHS from 5-10 years ago, despite the major loss of GMR, but I think Disney-MGM was a better overall experience in 1995 than it is now).

 

[Naplesgolfer]

Oh sure, many of them have safari type rides, but they're generally not close to the level of what's offered at AK in terms of the animals and the theming. They're not really comparable experiences to me (plus a number of places that offer safaris are actually bad places that really shouldn't have animals, although obviously not all of them).

It's all subjective, though. As I said, I could spend almost a full day at DAK whereas I can do everything worth doing to me at IoA and USF in a single day. I think it's a much better park than either. I also think it's a much better park than current DHS (current DHS is improved over DHS from 5-10 years ago, despite the major loss of GMR, but I think Disney-MGM was a better overall experience in 1995 than it is now).

I love AK. We and many on site agree with what you point out are the strengths of AK. But I have slowly come to realize many people I bring as guests either feel differently or don't see the greatness of the park unless they are led to all the shows, animal treks and on the train. They just don't even notice many of these attractions. Many people have a leaning to be ride centric and don't visit the park as I feel it was designed.

 

[J4546]

the parks are so crowded nowadays they rent nearly as fun or immersive as they were 20 years ago.

 

[Giss Neric]

Related to this forum but what happened to WDWPro? I dont see him here anymore. I miss his constant negativity. He moved to X for good?

 

[thomas998]

IMO the Safari was much better when it had the poaching storyline.

As good as AK is, IMO Silver Dollar City is much better.

Not sure I would rank Silver Dollar City higher... Although if you factor in the price of admission then yes... hands down SDC is far better if you get the right discount code you can get a season pass to SDC for the price of one day at AK.

Of course my biggest issue with SDC is that they managed to build the place on the hilliest place I've ever seen.... I think when I'm there I'm always hiking up or down a hill to go from one attraction to the next.

 

[BlakeW39]

I'm trolling a little (lot) when I say this, but AK is just a zoo. If you are really into animals, you would be better off going to one of the dozen or more world-class zoos we have around the U.S. (I was a Dallas and Fort Worth Zoo season pass holder for years)

We skip (or half-day) AK on most visits. It's fun sure, but it has to compete with Universal Studios and the other WDW Parks.

Saying Animal Kingdom is "just a zoo" is tantamount to saying Disneyland is "just an amusement park." Saying that animal lovers
would be better off going to a regional zoo over DAK is like saying theme park lovers would be better off going to regional amusement park over Disneyland. Afterall, many regional zoos are less expensive than DAK and have more animals, just like many regional theme parks are less expensive than Disneyland and have more rides.

I have been to many world class zoos and let me tell you, none of them have what Animal Kingdom has. Kilimanjaro Safaris is not your local drive-through safari and the wildlife trails are not your average zoo exhibits. This isn't to even mention the fact that DAK has rides and shows of at least similar quality to other Disney theme parks. Which makes it categorically not just a zoo. Although zoo is still not a pejorative. Thd San Diego Zoo charges more for admission than Cedar Point or Six Flags Magic Mountain.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

Yep, we stayed at the AKL because we were hoodwinked by the marketing material that showed guests could easily see animals from their rooms... Yeah, we were able to watch some animals if we got up real early in the morning when they let the animals out of their pens for the day... but they quickly went far away from the lodge so that you couldn't see them until they were herded back in the evening to be put up for the night. According to the staff we asked, the animals went off to some area that offered more shade to keep them cool. Needless to say we crossed that resort off out list for future trips. Maybe I'm just old fashioned but when I'm paying that much for a room I expect someone to be out their with cattle prods making sure the animals stay where the guests can see them.

On my most recent AKL stay, I booked a "standard" view room, which usually means something like parking lot or highly obstructed view.
The room I was given had a view of the animal pen fence/gate. That's the best way to describe it. While I wouldn't describe it as a very pretty view, I was able to see a good number of animals up close, at multiple points in the day. The animals seemed to like being over that way in the morning, and later they lined up by the gate in the late afternoon. It was an interesting view, IMO.

 

[Basil of Baker Street]

While I'm not a fan of the animation style, Mickey's Runaway Railway is the best trackless ride on property.

 

[thomas998]

On my most recent AKL stay, I booked a "standard" view room, which usually means something like parking lot or highly obstructed view.
The room I was given had a view of the animal pen fence/gate. That's the best way to describe it. While I wouldn't describe it as a very pretty view, I was able to see a good number of animals up close, at multiple points in the day. The animals seemed to like being over that way in the morning, and later they lined up by the gate in the late afternoon. It was an interesting view, IMO.

What time of the year was it. Our time there was in the heat of the summer, which was the reason the cast said they went way out from the resort because it had the most shade. Just wondering if you were there when it was cooler and they might want to stay near their pens... Not that I plan on staying there again as I now know I've better animal interaction at a zoo.

 

[FiestaFunKid]

While I'm not a fan of the animation style, Mickey's Runaway Railway is the best trackless ride on property.

Over Rise? - While I do not agree, I respect your willingness to be unpopular for the theme of this thread.

It's a photo finish for me with RR and RAT. RR has some fun parts, better music, and great main characters of course.

RAT feels more immersive to me, especially with that queue and loading area. Maybe it's just me, but RR having those high ceilings with nothing, just emply back almost warehouse look in most scenes, takes me out of feeling we are supposed to be inside a cartoon. I know it would be too expensive, but having those screens/projections above us could have been cool - or at least theming or lowering the ceilings.

 

[Basil of Baker Street]

Over Rise? - While I do not agree, I respect your willingness to be unpopular for the theme of this thread.

It's a photo finish for me with RR and RAT. RR has some fun parts, better music, and great main characters of course.

RAT feels more immersive to me, especially with that queue and loading area. Maybe it's just me, but RR having those high ceilings with nothing, just emply back almost warehouse look in most scenes, takes me out of feeling we are supposed to be inside a cartoon. I know it would be too expensive, but having those screens/projections above us could have been cool - or at least theming or lowering the ceilings.

Yep. Over Rise. While visually stunning, its too hectic and everything just kind of blurs trying to escape. Kind of the same with Rat but at a slower pace. RR is just fun and enjoyable.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

What time of the year was it. Our time there was in the heat of the summer, which was the reason the cast said they went way out from the resort because it had the most shade. Just wondering if you were there when it was cooler and they might want to stay near their pens... Not that I plan on staying there again as I now know I've better animal interaction at a zoo.

It was this time of year, but I think they went to the pens because that's where they get fed. The trainers gave them a treat when they walked through the gate, so I might be wrong, but I'm fairly certain they head over that way at about the same time every day. The giraffes were especially funny because they'd stick their heads over the top of the fence to look for their treats.

 

[thomas998]

It was this time of year, but I think they went to the pens because that's where they get fed. The trainers gave them a treat when they walked through the gate, so I might be wrong, but I'm fairly certain they head over that way at about the same time every day. The giraffes were especially funny because they'd stick their heads over the top of the fence to look for their treats.

Thanks for the insight. It makes sense if they were getting treats.

 

[Ztonyg]

Space Mountain DLR >Space Mountain WDW

My unpopular opinion is that Space Mountain WDW > Space Mountain DLR.

I'm a DLR guy (live in Arizona) and DLR is very much my "home" park. I believe what ruins Space Mountain at DLR for me is the photo flash right before the end of the ride. I end up always walking off the ride dizzy and disoriented for a few minutes.

 

[SplashJacket]

My unpopular opinion is that Space Mountain WDW > Space Mountain DLR.

I'm a DLR guy (live in Arizona) and DLR is very much my "home" park. I believe what ruins Space Mountain at DLR for me is the photo flash right before the end of the ride. I end up always walking off the ride dizzy and disoriented for a few minutes.

Not really a hot take.

DLR’s space is largely forceless and just turns left 100 times

 

[Ztonyg]

Not really a hot take.

DLR’s space is largely forceless and just turns left 100 times

Thanks for the agreement. As a DLR guy (who normally posts on DLR forums / reddits) most people find it sacrilegious to prefer the WDW version. Personally, I could (and have) gone on the WDW version multiple times in a row and I never feel like doing that with DLR's.

The even more unpopular take is that I felt DLR's version was better with the Dick Dale soundtrack than the current on ride music. I'd go as far as to say Dick Dale Space Mountain > WDW Space Mountain even though WDW Space Mountain is better than the current DLR Space Mountain. Maybe I also liked the rougher track of DL's pre-renovation.

The even more interesting thing is that I cannot stand the Matterhorn (even though it's the same ride system as WDW's space). I'll ride it once every DL trip because it's on my DL "to do" list but I never want to re-ride it during the trip. It has to the the roughest riding roller coaster in the planet.