Cinderella Castle Mystery Tour

[luke7059]

I just found a video of the tour on YouTube...

YouTube - Cinderella Castle Mystery Tour (Tokyo Disneyland)Part 1 of 2 (Part 1)

YouTube - Cinderella Castle Mystery Tour (Tokyo Disneyland)Part 2 of 2 (Part 2)

Was any reason given for its closure in 2006? It looked like an amazing attraction, really unique! My only guess was that it may have been too costly, what with the need to have a Cast Member as a constant guide throughout the walk-through?

[JoeInJpn]

Basically, it closed because of operational costs. Here is more attraction information:

Cinderella Castle Mystery Tour - Fantasyland - Tokyo Disneyland - Joe's Tokyo Disney Resort Photo Site

[Disney Magic]

That was one attraction at TDL that I was really hoping to get to experience mostly because of it's uniqueness. Unfortunatly it closed before I could make it there, pretty unexpectedly to me at least. I had always avoided videos and pictures of it cause I didn't want to spoil the surprise, but I hadn't actually seen it till just now. Thanks for posting the links.

[Fukai]

Joe is incorrect (and this is very unusual because he knows his stuff!). It closed because the castle was legally required to be retrofitted for additional earthquake support. It would have required rebuilding the entire attraction from scratch after the work was done and OLC decided it wasn't worth it to rebuild.

[JoeInJpn]

Forgot to add that bit about upgrading to meet more current earthquake and handicap standards. That's what I get for posting on the run. Sorry. Hehehe.

[Stitchy]

somebody said this on the video....

Tokyo Disneyland is owned entirely by the Oriental Land Company. They license the Disney Characters and Themes from The Walt Disney Company and pay them a big fee for it in the process, but Disney has no say in what they do with the park.

is that true?

[SuperDry]

somebody said this on the video....

"Tokyo Disneyland is owned entirely by the Oriental Land Company. They license the Disney Characters and Themes from The Walt Disney Company and pay them a big fee for it in the process, but Disney has no say in what they do with the park."

is that true?

Well, mostly, except for the last part. The Oriental Land Company (OLC) has a 100% ownership interest in the Tokyo Disney parks, leaving The Walt Disney Company (TWDC) with 0% ownership. Compare this with the other parks worldwide: the US parks are 100% owned by TWDC, and TWDC has a minority ownership interest in both the Hong Kong and Paris parks. Perhaps more importantly, TWDC manages all of the parks worldwide except for the Tokyo parks: they of course manage the US parks, and they have the management contract to run the Paris and Hong Kong parks even though they have a minority ownership interest. Tokyo is different: those parks are not only owned by but are managed by OLC.

But, that doesn't mean that TWDC "has no say" in the operation of the Tokyo parks. TWDC has a supervisory role in Tokyo. They provide oversight to make sure that everything is up to Disney standards, and provide Imagineering services for all new attractions. But day-to-day management decisions, as well as financial decisions as to where to spend money, are performed by OLC and not Disney. This makes the Tokyo parks unique in the Disney theme park universe.

[Disney Magic]

TWDC has a supervisory role in Tokyo. They provide oversight to make sure that everything is up to Disney standards, and provide Imagineering services for all new attractions.

your whole statement sounds about right. Don't want to sound like a broken record or drive this too far off topic. I just find it ironic how Disney inforces and upholds the Disney standard on licencees like OLC and the Children's Place, when they owned Disney Stores in the USA. but they allow their own standards to drop on their own properties. From all I have seen and heard OLC not only upholds that standard but in many ways exceeds it. I wish TWDC would start holding themselves up to the standards they've set. But that really is a topic for another thread, of which there have been plenty of.

[Malin]

Joe is incorrect (and this is very unusual because he knows his stuff!). It closed because the castle was legally required to be retrofitted for additional earthquake support. It would have required rebuilding the entire attraction from scratch after the work was done and OLC decided it wasn't worth it to rebuild.

I was not aware of the reasons behind the closing of this attraction, but it makes sense, just sad to see such an important piece of property sit there un used. But hey I'm all for these strict building codes. I wonder if OLC will ever pay up and put the space to better use?

[Fukai]

Interestingly, what would fit in Tokyo's Castle is the Sleeping Beauty Walk Through just done for Anaheim. Saw it last week for the first time and it's terrific. I also believe it would work inside Tokyo's Castle (which is not, however, Sleeping Beauty's castle).

[TDLFAN]

Joe is incorrect (and this is very unusual because he knows his stuff!). It closed because the castle was legally required to be retrofitted for additional earthquake support. It would have required rebuilding the entire attraction from scratch after the work was done and OLC decided it wasn't worth it to rebuild.

Then Joe is partly correct. It was a financial issue that closed the attraction.

Interestingly, what would fit in Tokyo's Castle is the Sleeping Beauty Walk Through just done for Anaheim. Saw it last week for the first time and it's terrific. I also believe it would work inside Tokyo's Castle (which is not, however, Sleeping Beauty's castle).

As nice as the newly opened Sleeping Beauty castle tour is.. don't you think that the Mystery Tour was a higher quality/themed attraction over the work done at DLR? I mean.. I am sure the images used were very nice but can the Sleeping Beauty Tour top the rising of the dead scene with the Horned King at TDL?

But, that doesn't mean that TWDC "has no say" in the operation of the Tokyo parks. TWDC has a supervisory role in Tokyo. They provide oversight to make sure that everything is up to Disney standards..

Reason why some aspects of the TDR operation have diminished in quality. I for one, would love it if Disney Co gave OLC total control of the resort as long as they only utilize the Disney characters on the property. gaijins be gone back to CA.