Does anyone get worried that DCA's revival isn't going to be the expected miracle?

[rgrant999]

I heard that because they do not offer one day park hoppers, many people opt to just buy an one day passport to Tokyo Disneyland. I'm curious as to how selling park hoppers would affect Tokyo DisneySea's attendance. Another thing to take into account is that Tokyo DisneySea is larger and more spread out than Tokyo Disneyland. Where Tokyo Disneyland might feel more crowded due to the compact nature of the park, the two parks might only be several thousand guests off from each other.

Really, you think so - my perception was just the opposite - take out the massive lakes and waterways and the entrance hotel and the actual space you explore in TDS seems much smaller than TDL. Then, consider the park has, what - 1/3 of the park capacity - if there were equal numbers of people you would see huge lines at TDS and less at TDL but in my several times there I've never seen that, it has been just the opposite. Again, just what I've witnessed...

[bfdf55]

The 4 Billion spent was not Disney Money.

As a stock holder Disney Money = My Money.

Spending over a Billion Dollars on DCA is a BIG FAT WASTE OF MONEY. If people had paitence now days (like they did in 1955) the growth of DCA would be slow, planned and deliberate, not a rush job, "lets throw money at it" solution that will probably end up being a failure, at least in the eyes of the "deconstructors" and "re-imagineer" crowd who don't seem to be pleased no matter what Disney does and always feel they could do a better job. If your that talented quit wasting your time posting on an unoffical message board and work to get a job at imagineering.

I am actually PISSED they are dropping that much money to "re-theme" DCA.

Well, Disney money is NOT just your money. It’s MY money too, and that of thousands of other investors. I was totally unsatisfied that they didn’t provide the budget (or creative talent) to produce the kind of park that I expect from Disney. That also goes for Disney Studios Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland.

Disneyland, in it’s time, was WAY over budget. Walt invested everything he could get his hands on to produce it. It’s shortcomings were due to the FACT that nothing like it had ever been done before. But even so, Disneyland was a TOTAL success form the start. And the growth after that was just gravy.

Now after 50 years of experience, there is no reason that such a poorly conceived park should ever be built.

The idea that they could build a halfhearted park and grow it into a successful one was an overreaction to the financial screw up at Disneyland Paris (totally due to the overbuilding of hotels, NOT the park itself). We’ll be lucky if the investment in DCA will get the park up to where it should have been in the first place.

Shortsighted bottom line attitudes have caused continued deterioration within the Disney company for much of the past decade. Hopefully Iger can get rid of the dysfunctional organizational sub-management that remains so that creativity can again provide the outstanding products that will again pull in huge profits.

[rgrant999]

I think I only rode Sindbad's Storybook Voyage about 5 times. I like it a lot better now since the refurb. The attractions I rode the most were Journey to the Center of the Earth, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Indiana Jones Adventure, and Tower of Terror. The rest of the time was spent taking in the atmosphere and magnificent vistas of the park, dining in the lavishly themed restaurants, and shopping in the equally themed shops.

You're reinforcing my original point - after a few visits, it becomes a 4 ride park (and 20K leagues is "iffy") with incredibly beautiful theming and shops - not good/bad, just what it is. And for me and my kids, those 4 rides are great, but lack the "Disney" emotional connection for me - especially Journey/20K (vs. Pirates, Mansion, Jungle, or even Soarin'). But splitting hairs, it is obviously a beautiful park.

[JeffYardDog]

Actually I'm concerned that it might be wildly successful and that there will be a number of severely frustrated Micechatters without a ready target to focus their free-floating, free-range criticism on.

With any luck, however, the planning for the third park will have advanced to the point where things will have begun to leak out and there will be sufficient material and bad choices - real, imagined, or exaggerated - to occupy them so that their impulses will be channeled into socially acceptable if not actually endearing channels.

Of course there is a risk it may not be enough and they will just recycle old DCA threads and not be able to work off all that thematic hostility.

[The Disneylander]

Hey, we always have Walt Disney Studios Paris.

[JeffYardDog]

As that famous postitician said:

"You won't have DCA to kick around any more .."

[Quacky4Donald]

I don't plan on spending the next 5 years worrying about something I have no control over or input on...

Then again I also don't spend time "deconstructing", "improving" or "re-imagineering" attractions, resturants, ODV Carts, and buildings at Disneyland. I also don't waste my time worrying about cohesive themes, whether something from a "galaxy far far away" fits the them of Tomorrowland, or weather or not the parks are "declining by degrees"

I prefer to enjoy the parks. But that is just me...

I half agree with you on this post and half don't. I also "don't plan on spending the next 5 years worrying about something I have no control over or input on..."

However, I don't see anything wrong with doing a little armchair imagineering. I am a poet, a lyricist, and I also like to create show concepts for artists (think Celine Dion's show "A New Day..."). When I'm blocked on a piece I am putting together I move on to another artistic path. Sometimes doing "armchair imagineering" helps lead me down a path that I wouldn't have normally thought of. This inturn then gives me inspiration that can be translated over to either my poems, my song lyrics, my show concepts, my merchandise ideas, etc. (You can see some of these pieces of work at my website: www.EmotionalDirections.com.)

However, I also agree with another post of yours where you talk about people that think they're "all that" and at times better than the Imagineers Disney has working for them right now. I agree that if these people think they have what it takes then they should step up and try to get a job as an Imagineer at the park. At least TRY. I think a lot of the time it's easier for these people to get cocky and arrogant on MiceChat because they're behind a computer screen and not face-to-face with a human being.

Gotta love the Internet.

...Joe...

[flynnibus]

I am not saying that investment in the park is bad, quite the opposite, but throwing a BILLION dollars at the park without a clear, concise plan is a BIG MISTAKE.

Who says they don't have a clear plan? Just because its not public, or known by us doesn't mean such a plan does not exist. And a BILLION over 10 years is not so dramatic

[Anders]

Until the day comes when I work at TDA and the fate of DCA is actually officially in my hands, then it's all just speculation. It's fun speculation, but it's speculation just the same.

I'm not going to worry about how DCA will look 5-10 years from now. Once I become one of the people whose jobs and reputations are at stake with the future of park, then I'll start getting worried over whether or not The Little Mermaid should exit through the Palace of Fine Arts or not.

I have faith that they have a plan and know what they're doing. Now granted, one would have assumed they knew what they were doing initially, but that was a totally different regime in charge at the time.

[disneyfan07]

heres an idea: move the ticket booths to downtown disney, split the promenade into two sections, which would become either of the following:

scenario 1: one section would become another part of disneyland(another themed area), the other section would become another part of dca(likewise another themed area)
scenario 2: the promenade area goes away entirely and the two parks merge under the name: Disneyland:Anaheim, California. no need for hopper tickets. problem solved.

[flynnibus]

heres an idea: move the ticket booths to downtown disney, split the promenade into two sections, which would become either of the following:

scenario 1: one section would become another part of disneyland(another themed area), the other section would become another part of dca(likewise another themed area)
scenario 2: the promenade area goes away entirely and the two parks merge under the name: Disneyland:Anaheim, California. no need for hopper tickets. problem solved.

except you effectivly would raise prices by 30+% immediately.. which would have a big backlash.. you couldn't give admission away to the other park without giving up a bunch of revenue.. which you wouldn't do after investing so much money either

[disneyfan07]

you are right. bad idea. nevermind. disregard.










ONLY 309 POSTS AWAY FROM MY 1000TH POST. YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mushufan]

The California theme is an interesting issue. Some "insiders" have argued that as long as the architecture fits the land and theme, who cares what the ride is themed to. Now I know Disney Geeks want everything themed to California down to the ride interiors, but I think there may be a logic to themed architecture and a movie ride ESPECIALLY in the pier area. The Santa Cruz pier does not have rides based on California. The rides at PP are just going to be like piers in the past.

Going loose with the CA theme makes more sense in my mind or else we will end up with Knott's Berry Farm 2.

[QuietViolet]

I wouldn't say I was worried about the DCA revival... worry is kind of an extreme word to use... At any rate, I trust the imagineers to do what is best for the park, and will support DCA no matter what because it has potential and deserves respect...

[TDR_Fan]

Really, you think so - my perception was just the opposite - take out the massive lakes and waterways and the entrance hotel and the actual space you explore in TDS seems much smaller than TDL. Then, consider the park has, what - 1/3 of the park capacity - if there were equal numbers of people you would see huge lines at TDS and less at TDL but in my several times there I've never seen that, it has been just the opposite. Again, just what I've witnessed...

I just wanted to correct a few things. Not including the water surface, the park is about 122 acres. Compare that to about 114 acres for Tokyo Disneyland (including water surface). And Tokyo DisneySea's capacity is currently about 65,000, as opposed to about 85,000 for Tokyo Disneyland.