Wonders of Life photo post

[Figment1986]

If they do shut down the pavilion and install something else, I hope it is good for epcot, and not something that does not go with the theme of future world, which is educational and entertaigning...

also,they might have to redo the entrance, as it is a little hidden and out of the way, even thought it is a great location.

I have always enjoyed the pavilion.. thought only did bodywars once before it went seasonal.

 

[mousermerf]

If they do shut down the pavilion and install something else, I hope it is good for epcot, and not something that does not go with the theme of future world, which is educational and entertaigning...

also,they might have to redo the entrance, as it is a little hidden and out of the way, even thought it is a great location.

I have always enjoyed the pavilion.. thought only did bodywars once before it went seasonal.

The pavilion has not always been hidden. The trees being allowed to grow up on the Energy side and the removal of the archway entrance has caused it seemingly recess into the area. If they removed the larger trees and put back in the archway it'd stick out abruptly as it did before.

 

[diddy_mouse]

Here's me infront of the pavillion in October...check out that overgrowth...

 

[Miss DW]

Someone in the Disney World community on LJ said that Wonders of Life will be open for the rest of the year. I don't know where her sources are from, but I'll make sure and post that once I find out.

 

[Buford]

Someone in the Disney World community on LJ said that Wonders of Life will be open for the rest of the year. I don't know where her sources are from, but I'll make sure and post that once I find out.

I think it says this on the WDWMagic calendar. :wave:

I had the AWESOME opportunity to visit the Great Wonders of Life a few days ago (Happy Christmas to me!), and it was VERY!!! smelly inside! A musty, moldy smell. Hopefully something awesome can be done to this pavilion soon... it was kinda sad, yet fun, as always.

 

[Miss DW]

Sorry, it was a misunderstanding. When the person said that it was open for the rest of the year, I assumed he (yes, it was a guy instead of a girl) meant through 2006. So yes, it's already on the calender as it is right now.

 

[ErickainPA]

We went to WOL and the CM at the bottom of the pavillion said that it was the last week for it to be opened. The woman inside running Cranium Command and things will definately be changing. She also said it was the last week for it.

The Goofy and other theatre have nothing going on in them. There is no lines for anything at all in the pavillion.

We got lots of pics for archiving, I remember when the lines were super long for Body Wars. The woman running Cranium said that people were coming up to the pavillion all the time when it was closed and now hardly anyone was coming up.

 

[MrNonacho]

We went to WOL and the CM at the bottom of the pavillion said that it was the last week for it to be opened. The woman inside running Cranium Command and things will definately be changing. She also said it was the last week for it.

It's definitely the last week for it during this season (out of two weeks total). This does not mean it is closing for good. No front line cast member working at Wonders knows for sure what is happening.

 

[socalkdg]

What about the rumors I've heard that WOL will run in Jan. while Test Track is down?

 

[Jorma]

Here's my friendly response:

M:S is a "debacle" because someone's mother wouldn't ride it? That's quite a harsh word to use, don't you think? I know of people who won't ride Splash Mountain because they fear the log ride drop. I know of people who won't ride SM because it's a dark roller coaster. I further know people who won't ride SE because it's slow and boring to them. Would you categorize any of these attractions as "debacles" because these certain guests won't experience them? Obviously not. They are Disney classics. The point is, not every attraction will appeal to every guest. As to "poor rerideability" and "alienation" of many Epcot guests, I've never seen any such report or seen any fact to support that rumor. I would hazard to guess that such "reports" are personal opinions spun by those who preferred its predecessor. As to the "tragedies," we both now know (having read the official report) that M:S did not cause the death of the child with the pre-existing health condition. There is simply no evidence that M:S has, in either design or execution, harmed anyone at any time.

In terms of "multi-attraction" pavillions, have you ever spent any time in M:S's post show? It's really quite interesting and one could bypass the ride and still experience some very innovative attractions in the pavillion. I don't think the same could be said for Horizons (or SE, or UoE) - it was basically a one attraction pavillion - the ride.

I guess it all comes down to one's definition of "family attraction." If you mean a slow-moving omnimover experience, than I would agree that M:S is not that. But I know plenty of families whose definition of "family attractions" involves riding roller coaster after roller coaster. We're in the 21st century and I believe what was attractive to families in the 60s, 70s and 80s is not necessarily attractive today. More and more "families" (and that word itself has a new meaning today) opt for a more intense, stimulating day at the theme park. M:S delivers that and more.

I see the point Hurricane is trying to make even if it's not clear to some. Why not replace a family (definition of family here being multi generational from grandma to 2 year old junior) friendly multi attraction pavilion with another of the same sort instead of a thrill type pavilion like M:S? It seems to me that a pavilion like The Land would make more sense as it appeals to a wider cross section of guests. There is something for everyone. As successful as you say M:S is, you have to admit it is very polarizing with quite a few either hating it or loving it with quite a few "Meh, it was OK but not worth a revisit" people thrown in. While true there are some people who will not ride Splash Mountain because of the drop, I don't see the debate here or anywhere else on the 'net about whether or not Splash is a "classic" Disney attraction or how many people it makes sick. On the other hand M:S is, here and at many other sites, a topic of debate on a daily basis.

P.S. Great photos! Brings back fond memories...

 

[utrythinkinof1]

I was at Epcot on 12/28 and it was almost completly empty. No wait at all for Body Wars. More people were at the playground with all those experiments. Soarin' was PACKED at 3PM there was a 3 hour wait. I also noticed the signs that say how long the wait is are sometimes way off. I went on the single riders line on M:S and it said 60 min. It took less than 15 min. Stand By line for TT said 140 min. It took less than an hour.

 

[MrNonacho]

What about the rumors I've heard that WOL will run in Jan. while Test Track is down?

Sorry, but it won't be open.

 

[Horizons1]

Going to EPCOT tomorrow and was gonna head into WOL to get some photos to document things (the more we have, the better) and since Santa left me a nice new Sony Cyber-shot gonna finally be able to get some good ones.

So is there anything specific anyone would like me to get pictures of? I'll gladly take requests, within reason of course, these may not be professional quality though. :lol: I am still trying to figure out how to work this camera, you need a degree from Harvard just understand the instructions.:lol:

 

[epcotfan]

Great photo post. Nice to see the Wonders Of Life open again.

 

[ScrapIron]

Disney World is supposed to be a FAMILY theme park where families can
ride together.My mother refuses to go on Mission Space because shes afraid with her anxiety and stuff. Thank god I'm 20 so it doesn't affect me as much anymore.

I personally miss Horizons but I LOVE mission space and test track so I understand that WoL needs to go. They just don't need to turn into another thrill ride is what I'm trying to get across here with my point. If every ride becomes a thrill ride, then what happened to Walt's vision of Disney World?

Disneyland (and it's various reproductions) is supposed to be a FAMILY theme park where families can ride together. And it succeeds masterfully. Walt's vision of Epcot was an actual working city, so what is there is nothing like the vision he described. Of course, as can be seen from my sig, I don't presume to speak for Walt Disney.

My first trip to WDW was during the first year of Epcot"s operation, so I saw a lot of the promotional material for the park. It was NEVER sold as a family destination. It was, in fact, sold as a more adult park, with education mixed with entertainment. There are no preschoolers anywhere on the planet yearning for a permanent world's fair consisting primarily of shops and Restaurants.

Maybe it's just my mood of the moment (Xmas un-decorating, waiting for dishwasher repairman), but I'm really tired of the idea that EVERYTHING in WDW has to be something suitable for a 3 year old. And for the record, I am a parent. And I am glad that my son could enjoy a trip to DL, and go on many rides, at the age of two. I'll tell you something, though. Most of his life, and, in fact, most of his childhood, he will be different than he was at that age. Misiion Space is the only thing resembling a thrill ride in Epcot, anyway, and with one exception, four year olds can ride it. Although TT is a very well done attraction, I don't see much of a thrill being in a car going 60mph when I drove on the freeway in a car going 80mph to get there.

I was hoping the WoL would be open during our July trip. But this morning miceage has photos of an empty WoL interior taken minutes after a photo showing a 60 minute wait for SSE. Hard to imagine it being around much longer.

Cheers.

 

[JarettK]

From our (ErickainNJ and myself) trip to EPCOT on 12/27/2005

 

[ErickainPA]

When we were at WOL, the CM at the bottom of the hill was saying come on in, WOL is open for it's last week. We talked to the lady that was running Cranium and she said that it's nice it was opened back up and ashame it's closing for good after that week.

There were a lot of people stopping by WOL, the CM told me that when it was closed people were always coming up and trying to get in. We got lots of photos for the archive of yet another attraction that is going away.

 

[maxime29]

WOL was dead when we were there. Our ride in Body Wars had only 12 people max. Finally saw "Making of Me". Cute show.

 

[wm49rs]

Bored, were we?

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

BuMP

Why bump? This thread is about 7 years old now and Wonders of Life will almost certainly never return in its original state if at all. From what has been said in more recent times, both Cranium Command and Body Wars have basically been gutted and cannibalized for spare parts (otherwise had parts trashed or sold off on ebay or whatever). It's probably a fair statement to say that Wonders of Life is dead. The building is used as convention space and it will probably remain that way for a very long time, if not forever. If the building ever reopens again to the general public, it will probably be with a different theme. And with how things currently are at WDW, even that is unlikely to happen anytime soon. The leaders (sad and shameful though it is) seem to be perfectly satisfied with keeping it the way it is. Same goes for the upstairs level of Imagination (not to mention a rather huge portion of the original ride's track being unused as well).