WDW vs Dubailand

TP2000

Well-Known Member
Has anyone looked at pictures of Dubai? They have some soaring skyscrapers built with questionable taste and architectural styles, surrounded by dirty barren streets. The weather is atrocious 10 months out of the year, and instead of rain storms they have sand storms that sweep across the desert and envelop the skyscrapers in giant clouds of dust and sand.

It's not a very pleasant place to be. Aside from some very limited outdoor amenities like tennis or camel races, or a nice pool or two at a fancy hotel, there will be no serious investment in large scale outdoor recreation in Dubai.

Dubai will continue to build tasteless skyscrapers built on 18 lane wide streets with no trees, but they will never build anything that could even remotely resemble a decent theme park. We should be more concerned about Richard Branson building a theme park on the Moon than we should about Arabs building their version of Fantasyland. :ROFLOL:
 

DisneyMusician2

Well-Known Member
Despite some narrow-views of the rest of the world, I would have to agree with the other posters. This should have no impact, regardless of the size. What the attraction of any theme park like Disney is the brand recognition. It is DISNEY. Without the characters and motion pictures backing up and giving validity to the rides, I am not sure anyone would have visited any Disney park in the first place.
 

DSNYKID

New Member
Even if it meets or exceeds it's plans.... I am quite comfortable in saying that it will have no affect on WDW. Think of it this way, is the Magic Kingdom really any less crowded than it was before EPCOT, MGM or Animal Kingdom was built? Is it less crowded with Universal's 2 parks, Sea World or any of the other Olrlando based attractions? I don't think so. This Dubai proposal is on the other side of the planet. I don't see it having any effects on WDW at all.

Only the really rich and ecentric are going to be able to venture to Dubai land. I say to them, have fun.

I do not anticipate a form DubaiMagic.com like wdwmagic.com.... do you?
 

cloudboy

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I personally tend NOT to think that many people from the US or even Canada or Mexico are likely to go to Dubai versus Orlando. Where I think there would be a huge draw would be primarily Europe and Asia, both of which it might be easier to reach Dubai AND would have better exchange rates than we would.

I really do think that this will be on the level of WDW. They have shown they are throwing gobs of money at turning themselves into a vacation Mecca. While some people may not like their style, they have some of the biggest and most notable projects already built over there. Plans are made up for this - they have started construction on some parts of it.

What i see, though, is this turning into mega Universal or Bush Gardens. I don't think they are really doing as good a job with the actual theming as Disney does - it still looks like things intrude too much, and are a little too roller-coaster based. I don't know if the lack of brand recognition will really hurt them, though. It might be a benefit in that people aren't going to automatically assume it is for kids only or going to be a repeat of other parks.
 

scottnj1966

Well-Known Member
As all other theme parks it will not make too much of a difference to Disney.

Disney is more then just a theme park. This is something no one else can ever duplicate.

Disney is part of many people's lives from when they were a child until now.


I also cannot see many people from other countries visiting the middle east.
 

JikoMarie

New Member
Just to clear up some American stereotyping that's going on here, people from other countries visit the Middle East all the time so there's no reason to think they would stop.

Also, even if Dubailand doesn't cause competition issues for WDW, why are so many people adament that it won't be a good theme park? I think it looks really neat and they have plenty of money, not to mention the ruler of the nation, behind it. There's no reason it won't be successful. In fact, the Dubai Autodrome and The Global Village are already operational.
 

gusdog

New Member
I doubt that Dubai having been refered to as a lest likely place to visit on vacation than WDW will have any real impact on tourist visiting their location. After all if you were to visit Orlando in the 1950's and proclaimed to people that it would see millions of tourist a year folks would have thought you were a crazy dreamer. Remember, that before Walt bought land in Central Florida it was mostly cow pastures or basically a country bumpkin kinda place. The Orlando we know today would not have been refered to as the "theme park capital of the world or America's Vacation Land" prior to Disney coming to town. Do you really think it is un imaginable to see that Dubailand couldn't have an equal effect on its location in the world? Just a thought but then again it takes more then money to build a brand like WDW. Do the developers of Dubailand have a "Walt" to give them vision and foucus? If not then perhaps it will be a nice place to visit but will it may never reach the level of global reconition that WDW has. Just my thoughts... Remember Disneyland too was just an orange field in CA before Walt and his team built the park which was started by him see a need that had to be meet. Now, it is no longer an orange field and his company is an undisputed leader in resort and theme park entertainment. If Dubai does indeed need something for thier citizens to do then perhaps Dubailand is meetting a need for the people of the UAE, and is that really a bad thing for WDW? I am going to say most likely not but if Dubailand is such a great prodject then why didn't a leader in Resort and theme park entertainment not consider building a location there?
 

DisneyYorkian74

Active Member
I personally tend NOT to think that many people from the US or even Canada or Mexico are likely to go to Dubai versus Orlando. Where I think there would be a huge draw would be primarily Europe and Asia, both of which it might be easier to reach Dubai AND would have better exchange rates than we would.

I really do think that this will be on the level of WDW. They have shown they are throwing gobs of money at turning themselves into a vacation Mecca. While some people may not like their style, they have some of the biggest and most notable projects already built over there. Plans are made up for this - they have started construction on some parts of it.

What i see, though, is this turning into mega Universal or Bush Gardens. I don't think they are really doing as good a job with the actual theming as Disney does - it still looks like things intrude too much, and are a little too roller-coaster based. I don't know if the lack of brand recognition will really hurt them, though. It might be a benefit in that people aren't going to automatically assume it is for kids only or going to be a repeat of other parks.

I don't understand why you think "Dubailand" is unique or special enough to have a deep impact in the world's tourism industry other than its size.

Walt Disney World's success has a lot more to do with the fact that it's "Disney" and less to do with its actual size.
 

cmatt

Active Member
wont be a threat - but it will provide a deceant contrast imho, and in the usual flair of dubai have a more wider range of facilities and also finnesse. I am planning a dubai trip either next year or in 09 for...:

http://www.desertrockfestival.com/

If i dont make it - i will at least go for my honeymoon there :) Dubai is a fantastic tourist trap - and id rather go there then the states if i could afford it - as stuff in certain places (like laptops) are dirt cheap :)

WRONG whoever said no one from other countries would visit there ;) alot of british expats are setting up homes there, and there is a steep increase EVERY year of the people want to go there from europe. Alot of planes from the uk stop off in dubai on the way to austrailia, my friend as a fine example spent 48 hours in dubai and that was the highlight of his holiday!

i think ignorance does seriously have an impact on the way people travel and how they perceive a place to be. Dubai as far as anyone is concerned is neutral - its going to turn into a vegas on acid once the oil dries out. There really is nothing to fear - you are probably at more danger traveling through the basque country, which is inbetween spain and france. There is also nothing to worry about travelling through that region either ;)
 

Jerm

Well-Known Member
For those of you unfamiliar with the project, Dubailand is a proposed (under construction sort of) project in Dubai, UAE. It is proposed to be twice the size of the entire Walt Disney World complex. My question is - how do you think this will affect WDW? Will people find more interest in Dubailand due to it's novelty, will Disney still retain it's leadership through better theming and better non-park connections? Will Disney change, or is Dubailand too far away to have a deep impact?

Space means nothing. Disneyland is a small little park but it does better then bigger parks for 2 reasons. 1. They started it all and 2. The Disney name. This park might do some thing big for that area of the world, but I don't see people going "I am going to go on vacation to Dubailand"

Please love Disney, it is what they grew up with and it is what they know.

J
 

Chloe's Mom

New Member
I went to both WDW and Dubai for holidays with my family last year. Dubai was fantastic although very very hot which would make walking around visiting themeparks very hard work.Dubai is very popular here in the UK at the moment and the flight times to Orlando and Dubai are more or less the same which could have some impact on visitors to WDW,however Dubai is much more expensive to visit (we paid the same for 5 nights in Dubai as we did for 14 nights in WDW with a 14 day Disney pass for each of us)
 

Tim G

Well-Known Member
From what I've seen of Dubailand proposals, its parks will not have the quality that Disney (and to a lesser extent, Universal and Busch) parks have.

It appears to me like it will be lots of Cedair Fair and Six Flags parks on steroids.
Athough a bunch of "Creative" people (even ex creative) got an invitation from them, asking them to take a look at the plans... :lookaroun

So dunno... :lookaroun
 

frankd1962

Member
Let's see:

Dubailand means I would have to get a passport, go through customs (on both trips back and forth), go to a forgein land where I might not know if they will speak my language and fly over the Atlantic.

WDW (even DL) means going to the airport, getting on the plane and getting to the Parks. No problem. Unless of course we have to learn another language between now and then.
 

Craig & Lisa

Active Member
If you think about it, Dubialand has to prove itself first before it becomes a tourist attraction. And then if it does, well that just means when the family and I go to WDW it won't be as crowded, so we won't have to wait as long for the rides. 25 days and counting........:sohappy: :sohappy: :sohappy:
 

scottnj1966

Well-Known Member
Just to clear up some American stereotyping that's going on here, people from other countries visit the Middle East all the time so there's no reason to think they would stop.

Also, even if Dubailand doesn't cause competition issues for WDW, why are so many people adament that it won't be a good theme park? I think it looks really neat and they have plenty of money, not to mention the ruler of the nation, behind it. There's no reason it won't be successful. In fact, the Dubai Autodrome and The Global Village are already operational.

I sure did not mean anything about stereotyping.
I also never said that they would not have a good theme park.
Everyone knows that that whole area of the world has always be volatile even before the USA even existed. So please try not to make this political. It's not. Lets not bring that kind of talk here anymore. This is a Disney forum.

I was just saying no other themepark has what disney has had for 80 years.
Disney himself and all those wonderful movies. Those things are brought into the Disney theme parks. That is a major reason Disney is so successful
 

loveyloo2

New Member
$$$ will determine...

I have no idea about the park, but just from the little bit that I know about Dubai, it's one of the most expensive places in the world. So even if going to that park piques the interest of millions of people only a small % of them will actually be able to afford to go...Just my thoughts...:lookaroun
 

Epcot82Guy

Well-Known Member
wow... this is a telling thread.

Just because Americans won't go in droves doesn't mean it doesn't pose a threat. A lot of people are closer to Dubai than they are Orlando who visit WDW. And, they have to get passports and what not. We are actually not as integral to the world's tourism industry as we may think (big part, yes, but many many places can hold their own).

I guess one other thing I would point out. Someone said that it was "Disney" that made Disneyland/WDW successful. I sort of have to disagree with that. It was the creative efforts, attention to detail, and uniqueness of experience that brought people to DL and later WDW. As Corrus said, we will have to see if that is the case in Dubai. It has potential. I would even go so far as to say DL and WDW did more to enhace the "Disney" brand than the Disney name did to enhancing DL and WDW. While it gave some stories to draw upon, Six Flags and Universal has that. It's quality and innovation that count IMHO. Anything that can utilize that better than Disney will pose a potential threat.
 

SnowFire

Well-Known Member
wow... this is a telling thread.

... A lot of people are closer to Dubai than they are Orlando who visit WDW. And, they have to get passports and what not.

I think location is a key to the ultimate success or failure of the Dubai project as well as its effect on WDW. It seems to me that the project has a lot of potential and I find it very interesting.

That said, I wouldn't go simply because it is too far - especially with three kids. For people that are closer to Dubai, it might become an alternative.
 

unkadug

Follower of "Saget"The Cult
Found a picture here titled "Dubailand from Helicopter on March 7th 2006":

It looks kinda........ARID :lookaroun


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Dubailand2006.jpg#file

Dubailand2006.jpg
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom