VIDEO - Inside Princess Fairytale Hall construction (April 2013)

[doctornick]

Why must they make it so difficult?!?! What is the problem with having one line that will guarantee you meeting three princesses or even four? Why do they feel the need to split it up two and two and you won't know who one of the two even are? Also why aren't they guaranteeing Princess Aurora? I would think it would make sense to have three definite princesses like Cinderella, Rapunzel, and Aurora, with a fourth surprise one like Mulan or Pocahontas.

What about Snow White? I would think she would be a big part of the rotation, unless there ends up being a M&G at the 7DMT (which I think has been theorized, but is insiders say is not happening).

 

[Pixiedustmaker]

It does. From what I hear they are two completely different places, each with their own individual, needs, challenges, and clientele. Perish the thought that one might have to do something different than the other.

So the clientele at MK don't need as many rides as Disneyland even though MK gets more guests each year? Everybody knows that TDO is cheap, and with the theme park numbers for WDW come out (May?) we'll see how far MK has slide in terms of popularity.

 

[Pixiedustmaker]

Passionate DL fans make up a good bit more of the attendance at DL than passionate fans do at WDW. WDW has no real incentive to cater to their fanatical base that would write letters, sign petitions, etc. If you have 1000 customers and tick off 1 it is no big deal. You do it to 100 and you have a major problem.

I don't think that keeping a dark ride open, (SWSA), and perhaps even plussing it is catering to fanatical fan base but rather that odd segment of guests who actually, shockingly, expect to get on rides in a theme park, especially a Disney castle park.

 

[Pixiedustmaker]

Disneyland Resort's dark rides include:

Alice
Mr. Toad
Snow White
Pooh (not very good, MK's is better)
Peter Pan
Pinocchio
Mermaid (DCA)
Roger Rabbit (Toontown)

MK just has three, Pooh, Peter Pan, and Mermaid.

I don't get why MK didn't just upgrade the Snow White dark ride to something new, like maybe a Brave dark ride, or a Beauty and the Beast dark ride . . . they had the track, space, electrical. A meet and greet is so cheap to add to MK as it doesn't require maintenance and the face characters were already plying their trade on Main Street. They moved Dumbo, and took out a dark ride in MK's Fantasyland courtyard . . . I bet it doesn't feel as festive as it used to.

 

[Master Yoda]

Disneyland Resort's dark rides include:

Alice
Mr. Toad
Snow White
Pooh (not very good, MK's is better)
Peter Pan
Pinocchio
Mermaid (DCA)
Roger Rabbit (Toontown)

MK just has three, Pooh, Peter Pan, and Mermaid.

I don't get why MK didn't just upgrade the Snow White dark ride to something new, like maybe a Brave dark ride, or a Beauty and the Beast dark ride . . . they had the track, space, electrical. A meet and greet is so cheap to add to MK as it doesn't require maintenance and the face characters were already plying their trade on Main Street. They moved Dumbo, and took out a dark ride in MK's Fantasyland courtyard . . . I bet it doesn't feel as festive as it used to.

Because the average guests wants pictures with the characters. A meet and great is far from cheap. Just take a look at what they are building in there. It is as elaborate as a dark ride, but unlike a dark ride it will be in constant contact with grubby hands requiring even more maintenance. Staffing however is the real killer. It takes 2-4 people to staff your typical dark ride and they will push 1000-2000 people and hour through with ease. A meet and greet requires 3-4 people per character, the characters get paid more and the guest counts are a fraction of what a dark ride pulls.

 

[WDWYankee15]

Disneyland Resort's dark rides include:

Alice
Mr. Toad
Snow White
Pooh (not very good, MK's is better)
Peter Pan
Pinocchio
Mermaid (DCA)
Roger Rabbit (Toontown)

MK just has three, Pooh, Peter Pan, and Mermaid.

I don't get why MK didn't just upgrade the Snow White dark ride to something new, like maybe a Brave dark ride, or a Beauty and the Beast dark ride . . . they had the track, space, electrical. A meet and greet is so cheap to add to MK as it doesn't require maintenance and the face characters were already plying their trade on Main Street. They moved Dumbo, and took out a dark ride in MK's Fantasyland courtyard . . . I bet it doesn't feel as festive as it used to.

Could you please start a thread called Dark Rides (WDW vs DL). This would allow this thread to stay on the topic of discussing the PFTH as it is being constructed. Unfortunetly the ship has sailed on saving SWSA, so this part of the discussion here of a dark ride in this location is over. Please don't take this the wrong way but seems that some of these issues take on a life of their own on threads like these and then when you look for a little information about the actual Thread Topic you have to go through multiple pages of arguements about who is right, who is wrong, and snide comments about each other's point of view. Thank you

 

[jakeman]

Again, I was piggy backing off the first comment. I wouldn't have mentioned it if it wasn't mentioned first. I didn't tout my beloved Disneyland... The first user who commented did that for me.

Needless to say, it's the truth, and the truth hurts, which is why you're so offended. Don't be annoyed with me, be annoyed with Disney. I didn't get called out on anything. Drop it.

Oddly enough your response didn't flag in my alerts until now.

There are many truths in life, almost every single one of them isn't relative to this thread, including the fact that WDW chose to demolish a dark ride and DLR did not.

I'm not offended nor am I annoyed; this is kind of fun watching you get worked up into a tizzy.

However, we are now just repeating ourselves, so you can go ahead and have the last word, which I'm sure could be summarized as, "Whatever dude."

 

[Californian Elitist]

Oddly enough your response didn't flag in my alerts until now.

There are many truths in life, almost every single one of them isn't relative to this thread, including the fact that WDW chose to demolish a dark ride and DLR did not.

I'm not offended nor am I annoyed; this is kind of fun watching you get worked up into a tizzy.

However, we are now just repeating ourselves, so you can go ahead and have the last word, which I'm sure could be summarized as, "Whatever dude."

I thought this was squashed, but you apparently want to keep going. *sigh*

Are you finally done now? I am definitely done and I'm tired of going back and forth with you? Are you done? If you're not, the good thing is, someone else has brought up DL and I'm sure they'll be willing to go back and forth with you.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Disneyland Resort's dark rides include:

Alice
Mr. Toad
Snow White
Pooh (not very good, MK's is better)
Peter Pan
Pinocchio
Mermaid (DCA)
Roger Rabbit (Toontown)

MK just has three, Pooh, Peter Pan, and Mermaid.

I don't get why MK didn't just upgrade the Snow White dark ride to something new, like maybe a Brave dark ride, or a Beauty and the Beast dark ride . . . they had the track, space, electrical. A meet and greet is so cheap to add to MK as it doesn't require maintenance and the face characters were already plying their trade on Main Street. They moved Dumbo, and took out a dark ride in MK's Fantasyland courtyard . . . I bet it doesn't feel as festive as it used to.

This is not the thread to be bringing up Disneyland or really anything that has to do with Disneyland. I ended up getting flamed, just for saying a comment that didn't even as much as hint to a DLR vs WDW-competition-type thing. I'm just warning you, no one wants to hear about it. You should either create a separate thread, in the Disneyland forum so no one will get ansy or offended or angry or annoyed or whatever else.

 

[BoarderPhreak]

I'm tired of M&Gs. Too many as it is... And Fantasyland has HOW many now?! Jeez.

 

[Magenta Panther]

No way. If Disney stated they were going to take away one of the Disneyland dark rides, especially Pan, Snow, Alice or Toad, all hell would have broke loose. People would have been ED, there would have been protests and petitions and the story would have made the LA Times. Not the same as taking away CPG, which was dead space. Disney doesn't want a reaction like that.

I remember the fuss that was raised when Eisner wanted to replace "Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln" with the Muppets. The public made darn sure THAT didn't happen.

Anyway, the Hall looks like it'll add a touch more magic to Fantasyland, so that's a good thing, even though it's just another meet and greet.

 

[JenniferS]

It takes 2-4 people to staff your typical dark ride and they will push 1000-2000 people and hour through with ease. A meet and greet requires 3-4 people per character, the characters get paid more and the guest counts are a fraction of what a dark ride pulls.

All the more reason to have left SWSA as a dark ride of some sort, and built a M&G from scratch elsewhere.
I am more in favour now, than ever, of getting rid of the Speedway, and building 2 E ticket, people eaters.

 

[Master Yoda]

All the more reason to have left SWSA as a dark ride of some sort, and built a M&G from scratch elsewhere.
I am more in favour now, than ever, of getting rid of the Speedway, and building 2 E ticket, people eaters.

You left out the most important part of what I wrote....the average Disney guests wants them. Disney is giving its customers what they want. I know what you are going to say. "I am a Disney customer and I don't want it." For every one of you there are 100 people or more that do.

 

[JenniferS]

You left out the most important part of what I wrote....the average Disney guests wants them. Disney is giving its customers what they want. I know what you are going to say. "I am a Disney customer and I don't want it." For every one of you there are 100 people or more that do.

No, I want them too - just not at the expense of actual rides.
I am a 45 year old woman who in November met with Ariel twice (new digs), Tink and her blue sister (some empty place in Adventureland), the four in Storybook Circus (a conversion of an old M& G basically), the four in AK (behind Dinosaur on some kind of terrace), a bunch in Animation Courtyard, a couple of chance street encounters, Gaston (TWICE!!), the four at the under-renovation Character Spot) and two character breakfasts - Cape May and CRT.
Clearly, I love photo ops, but not at the expense of existing rides/attractions.

 

[Tim Lohr]

I think the Princess Hall looks great, but this concept model from the late 70's shows a little village just to the right of the Cinderella's Castle

Today this area is mostly just trees and the Brave M&G stage is there, but I wish they would've gone with this village idea for a Princess M&G and kept the dark ride, maybe turn "Snow White's Scary Adventure" into the Sleeping Beauty/Maleficent version that was allegedly proposed back before MK was finalized


...I just realized how incredibly "retro" this all sounds

 

[doctornick]

I think the Princess Hall looks great, but this concept model from the late 70's shows a little village just to the right of the Cinderella's Castle

Today this area is mostly just trees and the Brave M&G stage is there, but I wish they would've gone with this village idea for a Princess M&G and kept the dark ride, maybe turn "Snow White's Scary Adventure" into the Sleeping Beauty/Maleficent version that was allegedly proposed back before MK was finalized


...I just realized how incredibly "retro" this all sounds

Yes, I tend to agree with this. The Fairytale Garden area could have easily been the site for the Fairytale Hall. The overall footprint isn't that much smaller than the SWSA plot. And then SWSA could have been kept or made into a different themed dark ride.

If they really needed a dedicated place for the latest movie M&G, they could use the vacated Main Street Theater space for it.

Edit: just thinking and looking at an aerial map, but they could easy put Fairytale Garden/M&G in the Hub in front of the castle to the one of the sides of the stage and have re-purposed the current Fairytale Garden to for a building, etc.