Fantasyland Expansion

aboden · Post by **aboden** » Feb Thu 11, 2010 10:13 pm

I'll try to go tomorrow if I can get out of the house and take my camera.

I don't know what they are using the area that they filled in of 2KLUTS. I'm sure they are taking a lot of that to build into as well. Unless they have permanent fixtures and/or storage now.

MadEye · Post by **MadEye** » Feb Thu 11, 2010 11:04 pm

aboden wrote:I don't know what they are using the area that they filled in of 2KLUTS. I'm sure they are taking a lot of that to build into as well. Unless they have permanent fixtures and/or storage now.

The showbuilding they used for 20K is going to be rebuilt for The Little Mermaid ride. The former lagoon area will more than likely be the Cinderella/Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) section of the expansion.

timekeeper · Post by **timekeeper** » Feb Fri 12, 2010 9:38 am

mindflipper wrote:Thanks, MadEye. Have they closed off Toontown for good yet?

Any firm ideas yet on when they will start to close off current areas and attractions? Thanks!

MadEye · Post by **MadEye** » Feb Fri 12, 2010 10:43 am

timekeeper wrote:
Any firm ideas yet on when they will start to close off current areas and attractions? Thanks!

No word yet. The only area that will close to guests is Toontown Fair (walls will more than likely be the case across from Pooh, Snow White, etc.). Dumbo will be closing, but no word on whether it will close before or after the Circus area is built. If memory serves, Pooh might close for an update of the entrance/queue. Of course, they might just use walls and scrims like they have been doing for facades most of last year (Main Street, Mrs. Potts, etc.).

Esmeralda · Post by **Esmeralda** » Feb Mon 15, 2010 6:57 pm

Princess meet n greets and double the Dumbo (I love Dumbo, but how about something really new??) to compete with Hogwarts? I don't think so. At least for me, this isn't the type of attraction the whole family can enjoy.

As an off topic note - wouldn't Disney be smart to provide a bus for a day trip to Universal? It would allow us to take the Magical Express, stay at a Disney hotel, but enjoy a day at Universal (if we can afford the $79 entry fee...). Kind of a Miracle on 34th Street thought.

Post by **Len90** » Feb Tue 16, 2010 12:32 pm

Esmeralda wrote:Princess meet n greets and double the Dumbo (I love Dumbo, but how about something really new??) to compete with Hogwarts? I don't think so. At least for me, this isn't the type of attraction the whole family can enjoy.

As an off topic note - wouldn't Disney be smart to provide a bus for a day trip to Universal? It would allow us to take the Magical Express, stay at a Disney hotel, but enjoy a day at Universal (if we can afford the $79 entry fee...). Kind of a Miracle on 34th Street thought.

First off, this is conveniently timed to open just about the time of Harry Potter land at Universal. In my opinion, it is not meant to compete for people, but rather keep the people coming to Disney as well. A lot of people will want to go to the park where there are "new things" to explore. I personally think it is just a means of keeping up with Universal. Potter Land is set to open in the coming months while Fantasyland will be opening in 2012. This would be Disney's way of trying to draw people away from Universal and into their parks.

As for transportation between the two: I don't think it is something that would be a smart move for Disney. I personally think it would be a smarter move for Universal to offer the service. Disney offers so much that it is just enough for 7 days, the average vacation length. As for Universal, they really only have enough for maybe 3-4 days.

Soarin08 · Post by **Soarin08** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 12:57 am

MadEye wrote:
timekeeper wrote:
Any firm ideas yet on when they will start to close off current areas and attractions? Thanks!
No word yet. The only area that will close to guests is Toontown Fair (walls will more than likely be the case across from Pooh, Snow White, etc.). Dumbo will be closing, but no word on whether it will close before or after the Circus area is built. If memory serves, Pooh might close for an update of the entrance/queue. Of course, they might just use walls and scrims like they have been doing for facades most of last year (Main Street, Mrs. Potts, etc.).

So does that mean no more Dumbo at all or just a refurb? Fantasyland without Dumbo... how weird that would be!

Post by **Len90** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 1:37 am

Soarin08 wrote:
MadEye wrote:
timekeeper wrote:
Any firm ideas yet on when they will start to close off current areas and attractions? Thanks!
No word yet. The only area that will close to guests is Toontown Fair (walls will more than likely be the case across from Pooh, Snow White, etc.). Dumbo will be closing, but no word on whether it will close before or after the Circus area is built. If memory serves, Pooh might close for an update of the entrance/queue. Of course, they might just use walls and scrims like they have been doing for facades most of last year (Main Street, Mrs. Potts, etc.).
So does that mean no more Dumbo at all or just a refurb? Fantasyland without Dumbo... how weird that would be!

It means that there will be a time period where Dumbo is closed. First the old one has to be closed so it can be dismantled and re-assembled later on at the new location. There is really no exact time frame on how long it will be, but there will be a time frame where there is a Fantasyland with no Dumbo.

aboden · Post by **aboden** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 3:10 am

Sorry guys I meant to go but starting getting a cold that night and been in bed a lot trying to work so never got out there. I def will in the next few days, tonight has been the first night I've really done anything.

agingerbugg · Post by **agingerbugg** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 11:49 am

Len90 wrote:
Esmeralda wrote:As an off topic note - wouldn't Disney be smart to provide a bus for a day trip to Universal? It would allow us to take the Magical Express, stay at a Disney hotel, but enjoy a day at Universal (if we can afford the $79 entry fee...). Kind of a Miracle on 34th Street thought.
As for transportation between the two: I don't think it is something that would be a smart move for Disney. I personally think it would be a smarter move for Universal to offer the service. Disney offers so much that it is just enough for 7 days, the average vacation length. As for Universal, they really only have enough for maybe 3-4 days.

I don't know that it would be a bad idea for Disney, I mean Universal is so bad that people would quickly realize how good it is at Disney. Of course Disney will never offer this service, they do not want to give Universal the money (I am sure they would have prevented Universal from even setting foot in Florida if they could). Universal would never offer this either, because they don't want to give the money to Disney.

Isn't there a bus service that runs from the Universal area to Busch Gardens? And I know Lynx (the Orlando public transit system) runs from Universal to SeaWorld.

Post by **Len90** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 1:54 pm

agingerbugg wrote:
Len90 wrote:
Esmeralda wrote:As an off topic note - wouldn't Disney be smart to provide a bus for a day trip to Universal? It would allow us to take the Magical Express, stay at a Disney hotel, but enjoy a day at Universal (if we can afford the $79 entry fee...). Kind of a Miracle on 34th Street thought.
As for transportation between the two: I don't think it is something that would be a smart move for Disney. I personally think it would be a smarter move for Universal to offer the service. Disney offers so much that it is just enough for 7 days, the average vacation length. As for Universal, they really only have enough for maybe 3-4 days.
I don't know that it would be a bad idea for Disney, I mean Universal is so bad that people would quickly realize how good it is at Disney. Of course Disney will never offer this service, they do not want to give Universal the money (I am sure they would have prevented Universal from even setting foot in Florida if they could). Universal would never offer this either, because they don't want to give the money to Disney.

Isn't there a bus service that runs from the Universal area to Busch Gardens? And I know Lynx (the Orlando public transit system) runs from Universal to SeaWorld.

Very good point and probably the best summation of why that wouldn't happen. There is supposedly a bus that runs between Disney World and Sea World. Lynx route #50. That can then get you to Universal. As for Busch, that is in Tampa so it would most likely have to be a tour bus.

I did some research and apparently there is a Busch Gardens Shuttle Express that you can take for $10.
http://www.orlandoescape.com/buschgarde ... tation.htm

mindflipper · Post by **mindflipper** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 2:26 pm

Seems we digressed a bit from the Fantasyland Expansion to bus service to Universal Studios and Busch Gardens...

...If anyone is going to the MK any time soon, can you snap some photos and post them here? I think we all would like th see what walls have gone up where in Fantasyland...

Jacca5660 · Post by **Jacca5660** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 3:15 pm

agingerbugg wrote:
Len90 wrote:
Esmeralda wrote:As an off topic note - wouldn't Disney be smart to provide a bus for a day trip to Universal? It would allow us to take the Magical Express, stay at a Disney hotel, but enjoy a day at Universal (if we can afford the $79 entry fee...). Kind of a Miracle on 34th Street thought.
As for transportation between the two: I don't think it is something that would be a smart move for Disney. I personally think it would be a smarter move for Universal to offer the service. Disney offers so much that it is just enough for 7 days, the average vacation length. As for Universal, they really only have enough for maybe 3-4 days.
I don't know that it would be a bad idea for Disney, I mean Universal is so bad that people would quickly realize how good it is at Disney. Of course Disney will never offer this service, they do not want to give Universal the money (I am sure they would have prevented Universal from even setting foot in Florida if they could). Universal would never offer this either, because they don't want to give the money to Disney.

Isn't there a bus service that runs from the Universal area to Busch Gardens? And I know Lynx (the Orlando public transit system) runs from Universal to SeaWorld.

Don't just diss Universal out of hand! My family and I have enjoyes our time there! It all come down to market share. I'm not going to say anything about Harry Potter land until I see it.

As for Dumbo, let's face it, it's just a carnival ride. Disney needs to stop the off the shelf filler rides and get one the ball with something that seems DISNEY! Just because something is in a Disney park doesn't make it good! Disney needs to be held to a higher standard!!

Post by **Len90** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 4:48 pm

Jacca5660 wrote: As for Dumbo, let's face it, it's just a carnival ride. Disney needs to stop the off the shelf filler rides and get one the ball with something that seems DISNEY! Just because something is in a Disney park doesn't make it good! Disney needs to be held to a higher standard!!

Well I would have to say Dumbo is a tad more than just a carnival ride. I honestly think it is a classic Disney attraction. It is definitely not at the level of Pirates or Haunted Mansion, but I don't think I could ever picture a trip to Disney without Dumbo. As for the dueling Dumbo's, it is a nice idea and a way to pay homage to the attraction and maybe finally there will be a water element involved in it like there is on every other Dumbo.

mindflipper · Post by **mindflipper** » Feb Wed 17, 2010 6:58 pm

Dumbo may seem like a carnival ride, but it was intended to be a "mild" ride that all the family could enjoy as opposed to "aggressive" rides like Mission: Space, TZ ToT, Everest, etc. that have a more narrowed select riders. I know we discussed in other threads there's not enough "mild" rides for younger family members in some of the parks. All new rides in the past few years at WDW are targeted for the 15+ crowd.

I liked the original Universal Studios more than the current version. I liked Hitchcock over Shrek, Hanna & Barbera over Jimmy Neutron, and Back to the Future over the Simpsons. I miss Kong (a generic family ride) and wish they could have put the Mummy (roller coaster like ride) somewhere else and kept Kong, especially after Kong burned down in California. I have several complaints: first, you spend far more $ at Univeral Studios if you want to try to get the same level of trip experience as WDW! Fast pass is free at Disney, not at Universal Studios! Second, the last time I was there the park looked in bad condition - the Seuss area in IoA was incredibly faded! It looks like the place has never got another coat of paint since it opened. Third, most the affordable eating options close between 2 and 4 PM, forcing you to eat at the more expensive dining places for dinner.