Video - Splash Mtn finale Jan 22 (all animatronics broken)

[Buried20KLeague]

Maybe it's because Universal doesn't get as much online attention as WDW does, but I don't recall ever hearing of something this egregious at Uni.

This is the largest scene/prop in the entire attraction that is in full view of riders for over a minute of ride time, and it's malfunctioning.

I think Disney's lowered the bar for Orlando with this one.

Not only is this the largest scene/prop in the entire attraction that's down...
BUT IT'S THE SECOND ATTRACTION ON PROPERTY with the largest scene/prop down!

Who'd have thought it would be okay at WDW for two massive E-tickets to have their main AA's not working and the ride not be 101.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

I never said anything about changing SHOW to show. I said Splash needs to remain in operation while Thunder is down. In today's world guests will complain when the attraction is not operating. They don't give a rats @ss that everything in the attraction is operating, they care that the ride is operating. Yes maintance needs to be done and should be done before things break, however my point being is right now 2 main attractions in one area can NOT be down at the same time.

Then you're changing SHOW to show. I don't see how the two thoughts are separate.

 

[BigThunderMatt]

Universal tries their best, but NOBODY compares to Disney when it comes to the full experience.

Clearly you haven't been to Universal in a while. They've upped their game substantially since Harry Potter opened (and I assume THAT had to do with the gargantuan revenue increase that came along with it).

I can go to Universal pretty much any time now and expect solid show quality on every attraction and I get it. I see effects working there that hadn't worked in years and it's ALWAYS consistent.

Haunted Mansion is, by far, the only attraction in the last 3 years that I have always gotten a consistent show on. You used to be able to count on Disney to provide that.

What has created this situation is Disney's inability to spend capital and reinvest in park maintenance continually instead of waiting until it can no longer be ignored, and their former devotion to the greater good of show has disappeared because so many people these days have a completely undeserved sense of entitlement when it comes to attractions being open during their visit.

Disney needs to put their foot down and say to guests "Sorry, better luck next time" and take pride in their show like they used to. If you go during the "slow" season, then the risk you should have to take is a major attraction or two being down but if you've been doing your research that should NEVER come as a surprise to you.

More rides per day per guest =/= more guest spending, and whatever bean counter came up with that theory needs to be fired.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

Ok, i may get reamed for this but this is so how our family feels. We only get to go to WDW every two years. the last three trips, Splash was closed. My kids have never been. my In laws have never been. My sister went when she was younger but not in the last decade. my brother in law has never been. Everytime when we go, it is closed for refurbishment. What are they refurbing if it is always broke> I hope and pray that is is not closed when we go this year. Our trip is in november/December. We moved our normal February trip because of these refurbs. to find out that it will be closed will totally break our hearts.
i would much rather broken AA then no splash at all.

I think you were correct when you said you were going to get reamed.

I'll leave it at that.

:zipit:

 

[TalkingHead]

Not only is this the largest scene/prop in the entire attraction that's down...
BUT IT'S THE SECOND ATTRACTION ON PROPERTY with the largest scene/prop down!

Who'd have thought it would be okay at WDW for two massive E-tickets to have their main AA's not working and the ride not be 101.

I thought of that, too.

I think this is possibly worse than the Yeti, since he's seen for a couple of seconds and this is just sitting right there in the open.

Either way, it's lower standards, higher prices. And it's one of the reasons I never pay to go to WDW anymore.

 

[Jane Doe]

Clearly you haven't been to Universal in a while. They've upped their game substantially since Harry Potter opened (and I assume THAT had to do with the gargantuan revenue increase that came along with it).

I can go to Universal pretty much any time now and expect solid show quality on every attraction and I get it. I see effects working there that hadn't worked in years and it's ALWAYS consistent.

I agree.

Also Universal's current refurbishment schedule at IOA means that in January and February they have Dudley Do Right, Jurassic Park and Spiderman down, but with work commencing on one when the other one's finished.




Which is nice.

 

[Lee]

Yes maintance needs to be done and should be done before things break, however my point being is right now 2 main attractions in one area can NOT be down at the same time.

That's silly, of course they can.
It wouldn't be ideal, but Splash going down for a day for repairs wouldn't be the end of the world. The rest of the park is open, along with the other three parks.
Slight inconvenience for the sake of show...worth it every time.

And as I said in the yeti thread, they used to have replacements for practically every part on hand for just such an emergency. Not to mention doing preventative maintenance. Since "run it until it breaks" entered the Disney business plan, the difference is quite visible.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Ok, i may get reamed for this but this is so how our family feels. We only get to go to WDW every two years. the last three trips, Splash was closed. My kids have never been. my In laws have never been. My sister went when she was younger but not in the last decade. my brother in law has never been. Everytime when we go, it is closed for refurbishment. What are they refurbing if it is always broke> I hope and pray that is is not closed when we go this year. Our trip is in november/December. We moved our normal February trip because of these refurbs. to find out that it will be closed will totally break our hearts.
i would much rather broken AA then no splash at all.

So let me get this straight: you planned 5 trips to WDW in February. Each time, Splash was closed. So, after 3 or 4 trips like this, you continued going in February hoping to get lucky? Does that seem logical to you?

My cat is not particularly intelligent, and yet if I spray him with a spray bottle every time he hops up on the kitchen counter, he stops hopping up on the kitchen counter. He goes elsewhere.

I hope for your sake that you get lucky this year, and yet Splash is in dire need of refurbishment--if ever there were a time when they might close it in the fall, this year would be it.

 

[marni1971]

No one is saying that Splash should close right now. Yes, it should do if the park has capacity to take up the slack. If things were run how they used to be. But it can't. Years of under investment is to blame, as is a savage cutting of maintainence staffing and budget. In a way, it is sadly too late now to save this situation. A situation that is just one example of the problem with the bigger picture. 20 years ago the attraction would never have gotten this bad in the first place. And any sudden park issues could be soaked up with other offerings.

And this is the company that used to actually have a third Omnimax projector on permenant hire, under covers and just sat on standby incase one of the other 2 projectors used in the same pavilion went faulty.

For example.

 

[NormC]

The problem is, I believe, that most of the folks that work in maintenance would agree with you.

It seems the issue is management and the size of the allotted budget for maintenance rather than the people in maintenance themselves.

You can only fix what your superiors TELL you to fix.

I'd imagine there are LOTS of people in maintenance that are very upset with the condition of their parks and attractions these days.

I guess they need to read the Oz Principle. Everyone should take ownership of the problems and not pass the buck. I doubt I would get fired for fixing something I wasn't told to fix as long as I fixed what I was asked to first. There are a lot of things that can be fixed with very little to no cost other than time. Sometimes things just vibrate loose. A pin here a spring there. All it takes is a little initiative and a worker that cares. Are the maintenance staff union?

 

[captainkidd]

Well anymore they don't get a whole lot of overnight time. Park hours keep being extended and then evening magic hours. It might help if they went back to a 9am to 7pm during the winter months like they use to.

Bologna.

If they were staffed with an adequate AA maintenance crew this type of thing could easily be fixed over the course of 10 hours. Probably a third of that.

 

[jeff59rt]

As a DVC owner these are the very reasons we are staying on property this coming April but plan on spending zero time in any of the Disney parks and will be spending our hard earned money elsewhere.......the magic is broken kids lets go........

 

[captainkidd]

As a DVC owner these are the very reasons we are staying on property this coming April but plan on spending zero time in any of the Disney parks and will be spending our hard earned money elsewhere.......the magic is broken kids lets go........

That makes little to no sense. If you feel that strongly, wouldn't it make more sense to sell DVC and stay elsewhere for less money?

 

[janoimagine]

Yes maintance needs to be done and should be done before things break, however my point being is right now 2 main attractions in one area can NOT be down at the same time.

Why not? Disneyland does it all the time and people still have a good time their. Its exactly this type of thinking that is causing things like this ... refurb's ruin vacations ... they don't, what ruins vacations is the abysmal state the attractions like Splash and a headline show Fantasmic! are currently in ... the line that the average guest doesn't know any better just gives TDO and the suits a free pass to continue their BS.

My money is going to the Cruise Line, where at least you still get a superior product with the Disney name.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

As a DVC owner these are the very reasons we are staying on property this coming April but plan on spending zero time in any of the Disney parks and will be spending our hard earned money elsewhere.......the magic is broken kids lets go........

You'd be better served to rent your points and stay where you like, possibly closer to the places you'll be spending your time. Doing that, you might not only pay for your new accomodation, you MIGHT be able to cover a large portion of the other expenses of the trip!!

There are services online that would handle the renting and everything for you even, if you aren't comfortable with it. Just know they'll take their cut if you go that route. I'm pretty sure one advertises here, even... Or maybe it's just google ads advertising them here. Not sure.

But if you check out the DVC section of the boards, you'll find the info you're looking for.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

My money is going to the Cruise Line, where at least you still get a superior product with the Disney name.

I'd say that's debateable.

 

[peter11435]

Bologna.

If they were staffed with an adequate AA maintenance crew this type of thing could easily be fixed over the course of 10 hours. Probably a third of that.

The park would have to close at 8pm for maintenance to have 10 hours to actually work on the attraction.

 

[janoimagine]

I'd say that's debateable.

I don't know ... believe me when I say I am a huge perfectionist ... the DCL exceeded every expectation I had from Disney, it really is a superior product.

 

[Tooning]

Thats Just Creepy

 

[Buried20KLeague]

I don't know ... believe me when I say I am a huge perfectionist ... the DCL exceeded every expectation I had from Disney, it really is a superior product.

Not to go TOO far off topic... But we've found a better "adult" experience (bars, casinos, etc) and better kids programs for FAR less money on Royal Caribbean. The quality of entertainment was fabulous on both, as well.

For our money, we'll do a week (or whatever) on a RC cruise, then tack on a few days at Disney at the end of our trip to get our Disney Fix, and still come in at a lower cost than just doing a Disney cruise.

To each their own, though. You're definitely correct in saying that DCL is a good product. That I wouldn't argue.