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

[RSoxNo1]

Thanks for the info BigThunderMatt, but I want to ask the same queestion I did earlier...who is Disney? I really want to know and am not trying to be rude. I would like someone on here to tell me who can make things change. Disneyland had it's lean years, but not anymore. That can't be just because of Al Lutz.

What (who) has to change to get the funds and attention to WDW so that extensive maintenance as in days gone by becomes as important as billion dollar next gen and billion dollar expansion (FLE, Avatarland, DVC resorts, etc.)?

Al Lutz also is/was the mousepiece (that was a typo that I decided to keep... and copyright) for very prominent people in Disneyland. This was an effective way to grab the attention of higher ups.

The ride is currently closed, presumably (but not certainly) to fix this problem.

Good, I really hope this is show related.

There's your problem right there.
A company the size of WDW should be able to easily to afford to bring on at least 8-10 more staff to focus primarily on show issues and assist with ride maintenance as well.
It would set them back, what....a million a year at the most? But I guess that would nibble at the bottom line and effect someone's bonus...

Funny that hiring a few additional 3rd shift workers (with proper supervision) could do wonders for all these problems. I know it wouldn't make things perfect but it could go a long way. Such an easy starting point for turning this maintenance situation around but of course it's not going to happen under the current regime. So frustrating....

Exactly. I think this is the reason why most of us have issues with this. The information is out there that they are understaffed, and we are seeing the results. And then we see things like Bob Iger getting a $31.4 million bonus this year.

 

[NormC]

Well they need to prioritize what they do. I don't think that each attraction has their own team of engineers working on it every night.

I would be glad to offer my services.

 

[BrittanyRose428]

Has anyone said anything at Guest Relations or emailed anyone from WDW about this? Maybe if enough people spoke up about it they'd be more likely to get going with fixing it. :shrug: Unless people have been doing that, in which case I don't know. lol

 

[PeoplemoverTTA]

Truth is the average guest doesn't care, they care about getting on as many attractions as possible during the course of the day.

Youre right, and what concerns me about this is that the Disney PR team is conditioning guests to think this way, causing the issue to come full circle. With regular posts on Facebook asking guests what the first attraction they "race" to is, or how many attractions they can get done in a day...plus more FPs, more ADRs and more scheduling...people expect to do everything, and they're angry if they cant do it all.

In my opinion, TDO and Disney PR have a joint hand in this disaster of a situation. It's really disheartening.

 

[ptaylor]

Youre right, and what concerns me about this is that the Disney PR team is conditioning guests to think this way, causing the issue to come full circle. With regular posts on Facebook asking guests what the first attraction they "race" to is, or how many attractions they can get done in a day...plus more FPs, more ADRs and more scheduling...people expect to do everything, and they're angry if they cant do it all.

In my opinion, TDO and Disney PR have a joint hand in this disaster of a situation. It's really disheartening.

Those posts by the Disney PR people irritate the heck out of me. They always lend themselves to a very sarcastic response LOL.

 

[MAF]

This is sickening TBH. Keep raising those ticket prices WDW so you can reward yourselves with another bonus for penny pinching.

 

[Thurp]

I don't have any first-hand knowledge of this but I was told that Splash opened later today and the scene was working. Can anyone confirm?

 

[asianway]

Heard it was back up from several of the non-gainfully employed professional bloggers today. They didn't seem to think that the show quality dipping beneath that of a Showbiz Pizza was that big of a deal. Although I wouldn't believe them unless I saw a video if the chickens holding today's newspaper

 

[spaceghost]

Saw a tweet from someone I would consider to be a reliable source, indicating that the final scene was back up and running today. If true, I find it interesting that they did (apparently) 101 the attraction and fix it up. Did they cave to "Internet pressure," or just follow through and do the right thing?

 

[JimboJones123]

I, for one, am pretty sure management made a good judgment call to go forward running the ride. I would be more upset about a downed ride than a one scene malfunction.

I found the bigger problem being the lack of the leaping waters and broken turtles in Laughing Place 2. These add to the whimsy of the ride and have been down forever. A three day turn around on the finale scene is pretty great.

But being sprayed in the face by the broken turtle for several months now is terrible. Much much worse.

 

[captainkidd]

A three day turn around on the finale scene is pretty great.

Actually, it's not. It's pretty slow. For a company that developed and relies so heavily on AA's, there is NO excuse for them not being able to fix a bunch of moving chickens within a couple of hours.

 

[WDITrent]

There should be a new kind of "Kingdom Keepers" book. Except instead of being about AAs coming to life at night, it can be about how night falls on the Magic Kingdom, and all the Audio Animatronics turn on in perfect working condition! There's fantasy for ya!

 

[thehowiet]

Actually, it's not. It's pretty slow. For a company that developed and relies so heavily on AA's, there is NO excuse for them not being able to fix a bunch of moving chickens within a couple of hours.

I agree 100%. I understand the need to keep Splash open with BTMRR down; however, if it's so important that Splash remain open, then you make it your #1 priority on third shift to ensure that it's fixed and in tip-top shape before the park opens the next day. Having an attraction down like BTMRR effects park capacity, so during these refurbs it would be wise to have additional third shift maintenance on staff to ensure that everything else in the park is running smoothly to avoid any additional capacity issues.

Also, the excuse of not having spare parts on hand is ridiculous for a company that relies so heavily on AAs, especially given the recent history of issues at this specific attraction.

I hate to be one of those "back in the day it was better people," but it's hard not to when issues like this weren't nearly as common...you know, back when management cared and properly staffed the maintenance department.

 

[xdan0920]

Let's not get too happy here folks. The ride is still in very poor condition overall.

 

[janoimagine]

I understand the need to keep Splash open with BTMRR down;

Sorry but I honestly have to call Shenanigans on the logic that you cannot have 2 E-ticket attractions down in the same park at the same time ... Anaheim does it all the time people. You have 3 other parks to absorb the overflow of refurbishments, Anaheim currently has what ... 1/2 a park in DCA but they still do it, it clearly works as Disneyland's attendance numbers are getting closer and closer to the World's and more first timers are going to Disneyland now than Disney World. To say that you cannot shut down 2 headliners simultaneously is total BS. The suits would rather have poor show that deal with guest complaints, it comes down to sheer laziness and their year end bonuses.

 

[captainkidd]

Sorry but I honestly have to call Shenanigans on the logic that you cannot have 2 E-ticket attractions down in the same park at the same time ... Anaheim does it all the time people. You have 3 other parks to absorb the overflow of refurbishments, Anaheim currently has what ... 1/2 a park in DCA but they still do it, it clearly works as Disneyland's attendance numbers are getting closer and closer to the World's and more first timers are going to Disneyland now than Disney World. To say that you cannot shut down 2 headliners simultaneously is total BS. The suits would rather have poor show that deal with guest complaints, it comes down to sheer laziness and their year end bonuses.

It's already been stated here - Disneyland is different from WDW. The majority of Disneyland visitors are locals. The majority of WDW's visitors are tourists.

 

[wedway71]

So I presume that Splash will be going down for a pretty major refurb after BTMR is done???

 

[janoimagine]

It's already been stated here - Disneyland is different from WDW. The majority of Disneyland visitors are locals. The majority of WDW's visitors are tourists.

And it has also been stated several times that is no longer accurate. Do a little homework, since 2010 Disneylands numbers have been close or equal to Disney World in terms of first time visitors and out of town tourists, Disneyland does still have more locals but the logic that rehabs ruin vacations is centered around first time guests or guest who return every 3 to 5 years.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Actually, it's not. It's pretty slow. For a company that developed and relies so heavily on AA's, there is NO excuse for them not being able to fix a bunch of moving chickens within a couple of hours.

Or a Yeti stuffed animal within a couple of decades.

Sorry but I honestly have to call Shenanigans on the logic that you cannot have 2 E-ticket attractions down in the same park at the same time ... Anaheim does it all the time people. You have 3 other parks to absorb the overflow of refurbishments, Anaheim currently has what ... 1/2 a park in DCA but they still do it, it clearly works as Disneyland's attendance numbers are getting closer and closer to the World's and more first timers are going to Disneyland now than Disney World. To say that you cannot shut down 2 headliners simultaneously is total BS. The suits would rather have poor show that deal with guest complaints, it comes down to sheer laziness and their year end bonuses.

Disneyland has substantially more attractions in it's largest park, and it's sister park is closer to that park than Future World is to the first World Showcase Pavilion. Hopping between the two parks is much easier.

Having said that, Disney only has themselves to blame for this. The Fantasyland expansion is a welcome and much needed addition to the Magic Kingdom, but in general, the build cycle for the Magic Kingdom has been slower than the build cycle for Disneyland. The same is true for all of the other Disney World parks in comparison to the Disneyland parks.

It's already been stated here - Disneyland is different from WDW. The majority of Disneyland visitors are locals. The majority of WDW's visitors are tourists.

This is not as substantial a disparity as it used to be. Disneyland hurts when two E-tickets are down at once, but the reason it can do it is because there are more E-Tickets within a 15 minute walk than anywhere on Walt Disney World property.

 

[COProgressFan]

It's already been stated here - Disneyland is different from WDW. The majority of Disneyland visitors are locals. The majority of WDW's visitors are tourists.

It's also been stated here how the number of "tourists" vs. "locals" as represented on the boards is not exactly accurate, and that the proportion of each type of visitor has been changing on both coasts. And what about folks who are DVC members, or visit every year even if they live in Chicago. They may not be "locals" but they certainly are "regulars" just as much as someone who lives in SoCal and goes to DL once a year.

The bottom line is Disneyland is just as much of an international destination as WDW, with just as many "once in a lifetime" visitors, and that resort seems to have no problem with closing attractions as needed to conduct necessary maintenance.

WDW management has dug itself into a hole in terms of maintenance budgets, staffing, and priorities. To suggest that is somehow a result of too many tourists instead of "locals" is absurd.