What YOU Thought of New Fantasyland so Far

[danlb_2000]

Hello Everyone,

First, I'm new here and this is my first post. I think WDWMagic is awesome! Now back on the topic.

I have been to both Cars Land at DCA and now the new FLE at MK. I thought both of them were incredible, but I thought Cars Land was better. When you are walking down the street in Radiator Springs, you really feel like you are in the movie! It had 3 new rides and RSR is by far the best ride Disney has made in a long time. I felt like I was going to cry when I had to leave and come back home to Florida. Being a Florida resident I have a annual pass at WDW and visit there all the time. So when I got to see the new FLE I was expecting the same as Cars Land.... I was not disappointed because it was beautiful. They really went all out making it look breathtaking. My only disappointment in FLE right now are the attractions or the lack of them.

I think this is one of the major differences between FLE and Cars Land. FLE recreates pieces of each of the movie environments, and in most cases does it very well, but Cars Land took the ambitious leap of re-creating virtually the entire environment from a single movie. I think this was a risky choice, but in the end it paid off. No place else in Disney have I ever felt so totally immersed in a movie environment. I am not knocking FLE, but I feel Cars Land has the edge.

Disclaimer: I have visited Cars Land in person but not FLE.

 

[jt04]

The FLE (and FL in general) continues transforming in an amazing way and already it can be said the FLE is better than Cars Land.

Fact.

 

[TyrantBoss]

The FLE is better than Cars Land. Fact.

Anybody who ends an opinion, or statement with "Fact" is the equivalent of the childish "Nyah, Nyah!"

 

[sgtmgd]

I think this is one of the major differences between FLE and Cars Land. FLE recreates pieces of each of the movie environments, and in most cases does it very well, but Cars Land took the ambitious leap of re-creating virtually the entire environment from a single movie. I think this was a risky choice, but in the end it paid off. No place else in Disney have I ever felt so totally immersed in a movie environment. I am not knocking FLE, but I feel Cars Land has the edge.

Disclaimer: I have visited Cars Land in person but not FLE.

Interesting analysis...I was there over Labor day and am now lamenting the fact that soft openings are happening..Id love to head down for another quick trip and at some point witht the "Limited Time Magic" announcements we will probably sneak down once more before our big Xmas trip in 2013. That being said..the Mine coaster still being over a year away from opening is mind boggleing...we wont be able to really judge how good the new FLE is until this opens as of today in early 2014. FLE has one new ride, one new Character interaction, added another Dumbo, a much needed resturant, and the pub...without having been to Disneyland and seeing Carsland in person...Id wager Carsland has more to offer today....again I dont think we can make a good assessment until the Mine Coaster opens..

 

[WDWFanDave]

I'll include my thoughts, although I didn't get behind the walls to see Ariel, the village, or Be Our Guest up close, we did get in for a preview of Enchanted Tales with Belle, and we were there for the opening of Pete's Silly Sideshow, so we got to experience all of Storybook Circus.

Before I go any further, let me also say I see things through the eyes of a parent of a six year old princess

I've been visiting WDW since 1978. I don't get to go every year (though in the past there were times when I was fortunate enough to be able to go every six months), but I have to say that I can't wait to go back. We were so impressed with the whole Belle experience; definitely something I can see us doing each time we go, perhaps even more than once each time. My daughter loves to perform, and to be able to interact with one of the Princesses in acting out the story...well, let's just say she loved it, and my wife and I loved being able to watch (and I might even join in another time!). Since we got in for the preview, we got to see the Beast's castle and Prince Eric's castle even closer, and they are breathtaking. This is the quality we expect from Disney.

Storybook Circus, again with a six year old, is so much fun also. Loved Pete's, thoroughly enjoyed all of the great interaction with the CMs in Big Top Souvenirs, loved the new queue at Dumbo (a great way to get out of the heat for a bit while our daughter got to play), enjoyed Goofini, and even let her play at Casey's once (so hot that she dried off pretty quickly, even though she got incredibly soaked).

Perhaps one of the things I enjoyed the most, outside of the fun with my daughter and the amazing detail that surrounded us, was without question the experience with the Cast Members working in these areas. They are, and should be, very proud of being part of these great new areas. From the folks in Big Top Souvenirs, to the wonderful ladies attending to the train station restrooms (one of whom rescued my wife's iPhone as she set it down and forgot it there), they were just so welcoming. Definitely a fantastic experience.

Wasn't like that everywhere during our time at WDW, but that's for another thread.

 

[danlb_2000]

The FLE (and FL in general) continues transforming in an amazing way and already it can be said the FLE is better than Cars Land.

Fact.

Is it just me or do these posts seem out of character for JT? He normally goes to great lengths to vehemently defend this point of view, even if it is misguided. These repeated one liners about FLE vs Cars Land seem out of character to me.

 

[jt04]

Is it just me or do these posts seem out of character for JT? He normally goes to great lengths to vehemently defend this point of view, even if it is misguided. These repeated one liners about FLE vs Cars Land seem out of character to me.

Sorry but very busy. In the end though, you will see I am right.

 

[TimeTrip]

Sorry but very busy. In the end though, you will see I am right.

You're just in full 100% trolling mode now aren't you?

 

[FrankLapidus]

It's Wednesday and the FLE is still better than Cars Land.

Now it's Thursday and have you actually been to either of them yet?

From what I've seen it does look amazing. I saw it when it was nearly complete at the end of September and was impressed with the level of detail that had gone into it and from an aesthetic standpoint Disney haven't disappointed with the FLE. It will be nice to have some new things to do next year when we visit but the expansion does look like being a nice addition to MK and there remains the Mine Coaster to look forward to.

 

[Todd L]

Not going for another 10 months....cant wait to see for myself!!

 

[dopeylover]

Looks amazing, can't wait til we go next year!

 

[tomman710]

Is it just me or do these posts seem out of character for JT? He normally goes to great lengths to vehemently defend this point of view, even if it is misguided. These repeated one liners about FLE vs Cars Land seem out of character to me.

He is very busy watching videos and looking at photos so he can fully "experience" the new Fantasyland, what better way to collect facts.

...

Now my two cents ... I don't know how to say this without sounding argumentative but I think anyone calling Fantasyland a "home run" or "A+" has low expectations.

My opinion? It's a solid double maybe a B- or B ... and it all has to do with the themeing which is impeccable ... but I think the fears that this 500 million expansion was light on attractions were dead on. The problem is we have a beautifully themed immaculate new land with no real anchor and that's a shame ... but again this isn't me saying it sucks, its beautiful, but just kinda curious if scenery was a better investment than a true E-ticket?

 

[dopeylover]

The people photographing the bathrooms were probably the same fanatics who feel the need to obsessively document every square inch of the new land for their online blogs.

(With apologies to Seinfeld)

Not that there's anything wrong with that...

Let us all not be so quick to judge bathroom photographers when we all spend hours on here debating the SMALLEST of details and how this will affect our next trip/lives/WDW in general!

 

[jmb2676]

We were there on Saturday. Overall, the area looks nice. I'm sure it will be better without the walls. Other than looks, there just doesn't seem to be much substance. The queue for Mermaid is nice, but it was a walk on at 10:00 when we were there. We did however get behind 3 people who insisted on photographing every square inch of the queue area so it did take a few minutes. We thought the ride was pretty lame. Even my girlfriend, who never points anything out was disappointed with the exposed cement walls and lighting in many areas. I rode Goofy with my 3 year old niece and she seemed to enjoy it.

And JT... is absolutely NOT a fact that FLE is better than Cars Land, at least at this point.

 

[Magenta Panther]

I'll include my thoughts, although I didn't get behind the walls to see Ariel, the village, or Be Our Guest up close, we did get in for a preview of Enchanted Tales with Belle, and we were there for the opening of Pete's Silly Sideshow, so we got to experience all of Storybook Circus.

Before I go any further, let me also say I see things through the eyes of a parent of a six year old princess

I've been visiting WDW since 1978. I don't get to go every year (though in the past there were times when I was fortunate enough to be able to go every six months), but I have to say that I can't wait to go back. We were so impressed with the whole Belle experience; definitely something I can see us doing each time we go, perhaps even more than once each time. My daughter loves to perform, and to be able to interact with one of the Princesses in acting out the story...well, let's just say she loved it, and my wife and I loved being able to watch (and I might even join in another time!). Since we got in for the preview, we got to see the Beast's castle and Prince Eric's castle even closer, and they are breathtaking. This is the quality we expect from Disney.

Storybook Circus, again with a six year old, is so much fun also. Loved Pete's, thoroughly enjoyed all of the great interaction with the CMs in Big Top Souvenirs, loved the new queue at Dumbo (a great way to get out of the heat for a bit while our daughter got to play), enjoyed Goofini, and even let her play at Casey's once (so hot that she dried off pretty quickly, even though she got incredibly soaked).

Perhaps one of the things I enjoyed the most, outside of the fun with my daughter and the amazing detail that surrounded us, was without question the experience with the Cast Members working in these areas. They are, and should be, very proud of being part of these great new areas. From the folks in Big Top Souvenirs, to the wonderful ladies attending to the train station restrooms (one of whom rescued my wife's iPhone as she set it down and forgot it there), they were just so welcoming. Definitely a fantastic experience.

Wasn't like that everywhere during our time at WDW, but that's for another thread.

What a wonderful review! It's nice to hear about FLE from the point of view of a parent (which I am not). I do think that FLE LOOKS amazing and immersive - can't wait to experience it for myself. As for the Belle attraction...I still wish we'd get to see the CHARACTERS act out Belle's story, via AAs, while we sit inside the castle, with all its magic and atmospherics. That would be too cool. But I'm glad that that attraction, as it is, appears to be working for the kids. I just have this fear that TDO will aim EVERYTHING in Fantasyland at the kiddies. That's not fair or reasonable. Fantasyland is WDW's signature park. It has the characters and magical associations that made Disney...Disney. It should be for EVERYONE. I hope the next attraction - the Dwarfs Mine Train...won't be just a kiddie ride. That adults can enjoy it too. We'll see...

 

[Atomicmickey]

The FLE is better than Cars Land. Fact.

I suppose that depends on what your definition of is, is.

 

[danlb_2000]

Sorry but very busy. In the end though, you will see I am right.

I can say with 100% certainty that I will never state one is better then the other as an absolute fact. My opinion that Cars Land is better then FLE may change once I see FLE in person, but since both lands are well done and both have thier merits I would never try to convince someone that one is clearly better then the other.

 

[NormC]

The FLE (and FL in general) continues transforming in an amazing way and already it can be said the FLE is better than Cars Land.

Fact.

Opinion

 

[luv]

Checked out FLE today. I was surprised by how good the facades, rockwork, and queue for Mermaid look. Gaston's was not open. Did not do Belle's but honestly don't have much desire to. Its nice to see a basically completed Storybook Circus. A few weeks ago I rode Mermaid in DCA for the first time, so I guess the ride itself had nothing new for me. But man is that queue fantastic. Its... kind of a shame that so much effort was spent on the queue, and yet the ride is forgettable (and in some places, downright cheap) in comparison.

Still, all the fancy scenery can't change the fact that they will not be able to unveil this as a big grand opening - there's still a big ugly construction site smack dab in the middle of it. And even when 7 Dwarfs is finished, when all is said and done, MK only really gained two rides. I really feel that MK deserved a true, showstopping E-ticket like RSR, but we're not going to get it.


I've now been to both, and I'm probably correct in assuming that you have been to neither, and NO, it absolutely is NOT.

If you count the loss of SWSA (which I do), the MK will have only gained one ride (and half a dumbo) when SDMT has opened. As of now, we are only up half a Dumbo, ride-wise. But LM is much better than SWSA was.

ITA about having a Grand Opening while you're still under construction.

I don't have any idea how long from the announcement of Harry Potter to the grand opening (with everything open), but it will be interesting to compare the times once SDMT opens.

 

[luv]

I never have a problem stating my opinions as if they were facts.

Stitch sucks.

I don't need to add an IMO to that or anything else, really, because I assume everyone knows that we are are just stating what we think...giving our opinions. We'd all have to start or end EVERY POST with an IMO if we all didn't just go on that assumption, lol.

If someone else says, "No, it doesn't suck! It's the best ride ever! I love Stitch so much and seeing him made me deliriously happy! That smelly burp was so funny I laughed out loud! It's the best ride in WDW!"...it won't upset me. I won't worry that them loving it means I'm wrong for thinking it sucks. I won't get mad at them.

We all have opinions. They can be different.

Arguing that blue is the only color one can paint a pool is silly. Most of us prefer blue pools. The overwhelming majority of people use blue or a grey with blue in it. But a person *could* paint a pool pink or yellow, if they wanted to. You might be disturbed by a pink pool. You might hate the idea. You could even refuse to swim in it. But none of that would make blue better.

To each, his own.