WDW Pirates: more info

[DigitalDisney]

I'm not as disappointed about the skull as I am about the parrot. It's too bad the parrot couldn't have even been moved to a prominent location in the ride (say in the loading area?). If anything, the original barker bird should have been replaced with the parrot from the first movie (the one that was with the mute pirate).

Although, that being said, does Pirates really need a barker bird? The ride is pretty darn famous as it is. I think the new signage and that awesome new watchtower w/skeleton are pretty darn cool, and will do the job nicely. On a related note, does anybody have nighttime pictures of the new Pirates stuff? I'd love to see what everything looks like at night...

Seems like Adventureland isn't bird friendly anymore....
- The original Tiki-Room barker bird was removed a long time ago.
- The live birds by the Treehouse (Captain Nemo and Babycakes) are also nowhere to be found.
- Let's not forget the original Tiki-Room show that was destroyed by that fateful rehab
- Now the POTC barker bird is also gone

 

[tigger1968]

We got to ride twice today (I'm writing from my room at PO!) and I have to agree the new waterfall effect is awesome. Also, I do agree that the end scene is now much more barren, and frankly less interesting, than it was before. Don't get me wrong, the new AA's are great, and we loved all the upgrades for the most part, except for the end scene. It only really has Jack in it, and he's set so far back in that you don't get a lot of time to dwell on him, and all of the other elements that used to surround that room are now removed. Other than that, great show Disney!:sohappy: :sohappy:

 

[hokielutz]

Can someone say for certain, whether or not, Pirates opened up on Friday the 30th? I was there in the morning for the 11:50 Sparrow-how to be a pirate show... but the cast members in front of the attraction said July 7th.... July 7th....

 

[disneydata]

Can someone say for certain, whether or not, Pirates opened up on Friday the 30th? I was there in the morning for the 11:50 Sparrow-how to be a pirate show... but the cast members in front of the attraction said July 7th.... July 7th....

Everyone was (and is) told to inform that the opening date is July 7th. There was an extremely limited cast preview on the 30th and the next morning the ride soft opened. We never knew if those were going to happen so the date was always set at the 7th to tell the guests.

 

[mousermerf]

Hellos from pirateland...

Query - what's wrong with our storm scene?

I thought the lighting in ours was updated some, but i didnt check out the DL vids.

And wow - the fog is thick at night. I rode midafternoon and then like 11pm-ish and at 11pm the whole ship was almost obscured. There was a hole in the fog wall just big enough to show Barbossa. I couldn't even see much of the rest of the scene, but it was neat, as it added to the cannons and such. (The fog would curl and swoosh as the air cannons fired).

 

[uglybug2005]

Seems like Adventureland isn't bird friendly anymore....
- The original Tiki-Room barker bird was removed a long time ago.
- The live birds by the Treehouse (Captain Nemo and Babycakes) are also nowhere to be found.
- Let's not forget the original Tiki-Room show that was destroyed by that fateful rehab
- Now the POTC barker bird is also gone

Nemo and Babycakes died after being fed by a guest. That led to the removal of all birds to DAK, where they would be as close as possible to emergency veterenary care.

The original Tiki Room barker bird only existed at Disneyland, and was removed because he caused traffic jams.

I have to say that I've seen far fewer guests walk out of the current version of WDW's tiki room, but that's just anecdotal, I have no hard numbers.

Also, on a different note...
Miceage and Mouseplanet have both reported that Pirates at WDW has a new extended queue, and that they never before used the chains under the covered plaza. That is not true. The reason for the covered plaza has always been for use as extended queue. I can remember many times having to move strollers out of the way so that I could open another loop in the plaza.
Strollers have now officially been barred from entry into the plaza, and the courtesy wheelchairs have been moved closer to the marquee, but the queue configuration is pretty much the same.

 

[CatLady]

Others have described Jack Sparrow #1, but I'll just add that he does fit thematically, and he's incredibly life-like.

I was very impressed with how lifelike the new Jack Sparrow AAs are, particularly the first one. When I explained this to someone who hasn't yet been on the ride, their question was "well does it stick out if it's a higher grade of AA?" It doesn't, which is kind of interesting. Maybe that AA's distance from the other AAs make it not look out of place. I will have to ride again to decide that one.

 

[Langdonj]

My anticipation for my first ride on Expedition Everist has some what wained, but since I haven't visited WDWmagic in a while this refurb comes as a total surprise. Now my Oct/Nov trip holds so much more promise. :sohappy: :sohappy:

 

[TP2000]

Having read DL Pirates reviews, it's obvious (which we already expected) that DL received so much more new elements than WDW. But it was surprising to see that WDW actually removed a bunch of stuff---whether it was an intentional creative decision, or an opportunity to ditch some aging, costly technology.

I've been on the new Disneyland version a half dozen times now, and seen some pretty good videos and pics of the new WDW version. And I was also surprised at how little the WDW version was changed compared to Disneyland.

Take the Battle Scene as just one example; Cannon splashes at Disneyland go 15 feet into the air and get the passing boats wet - SPLOOSH!..... The two animatronic soldiers on the fort in the Battle Scene got new dialogue and even they join in the shouting match about Jack Sparrow as they peek above the fort balustrades before firing their cannons back at the pirate ship.... New props and boats bob and float in the harbor as you sail through; barrels, dinghies, crates, sailboats, etc. all are anchored in that harbor being buffeted by those giant cannon splashes.... the shadow fighting pirates up on the second fort got a refresh and really pop now, and there's a new dinghie in the water below with a rope ladder going up the fort so you can now imagine how they got up there in the first place.... the much-touted new digital versions of the clouds are AMAZING and now a full moon peeks out from behind the passing clouds and fog, coming out of the caves I swore it looked real.... the new pressurized air concussions timed perfectly to the audio boomboxes when the cannons fire get everyone in the boat careening to one side of the boat or another as the cannons fire above your heads.... It's really a very impressive scene now!

The rest of the ride continues that trend, and the 7 minutes of the ride that precede the Battle Scene got some of the biggest and most noticeable changes; The Talking Skull above Drop One now wearing Sparrow's hat and bling, fantastic new digital version of The Hurricane Scene, Crew's Quarters Scene redone and the chess-playing skeletons from the WDW queue were added to this scene, Captain's Quarters Scene looks amazing and new skeleton parrot added near the ghost-playing piano, Treasure Scene filled with movie props and actual Mayan Chest from the movie - you have to grab your sunglasses as you float past because the gold is so bright, and of course the Transition Tunnel with Davy Jones, etc.

It's been said before, but there is 8 full minutes missing from WDW's version of Pirates of the Caribbean. I would have thought this big rehab would have been an opportunity to make what parts of the ride WDW does have really impressive and ready for 21st century audiences. Disneyland appears to have gotten a heavier overlay to an already longer and stronger ride. But the last thing they should be doing at WDW is taking stuff out while they add the movie stuff in. The WDW version needs all the help it can get, in my opinion.