This week, we are at Walt Disney World! This is always a treat for us since we live on the west coast so we do not take a trip to these 4 parks lightly. Robert’s favorite park is EPCOT and they’re in the middle of their 20th year of the Food & Wine festival in the World Showcase area of the park. Unfortunately, EPCOT’s guests have a bad reputation for taking advantage of the libations at the park and proudly wear their drunkenness on their sleeves (or matching t-shirts.) This year is no different, it would seem, as Robert took this video Sunday night which has since gone viral!
The guy climbing had been bragging to his friends that he would climb the stairs and one in his group said she would join him. So up they went! Well, he did, but she was quickly pulled down by Disney security. As you can see in the video, he made it to the top without being apprehended. Many online have wondered what happened after the video cuts out here, and we’ll post that upon Robert’s return! Unfortunately, he was able to snake down the side and away from security. Robert even saw him later with his friends before park closing. We’re not sure that he was ever caught and are waiting for some official statement from Disney about it. The strange thing is this isn’t the first time this happened. When I went in 2012, someone had tried to climb up the temple and I got this response on twitter:
Since that video and story went viral, we’ve been lucky (depending on how you look at it when one is on vacation) to be cited on severalmajornewsoutlets. Here’s a fun one:
And since then, the Mexico pavilion has gone from looking as it always has: To looking more like this:
Not much noticeable in the wide shot.Plants flanking the base of the stairs.A closeup of the plantsMakeshift signageSign with plant
They’ve added some plants which I actually don’t mind but they’ve also included a theme-less sign here. This is at least the temporary fix that Team Disney Orlando has come up with but it will be interesting to see how it evolves from here. Robert mentioned there’s a security guard standing by as well. EPCOT’s Food & Wine Festival comes to a close for 2015 on Nov 16th.
Stay tuned to the blog as we will be posting Robert’s full video here as well as podcasting about it next week as we return from our hiatus. What do you think about actions like this at Disney parks and does it affect your experience? Or have you seen this happen before at this or another park? Let us know in the comment section below!
Yesterday at Disney California Adventure, a unique opportunity arose. As I made my way over to the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, I noticed it was down. I walked up to the front and I noticed they were letting a few people inside. As I approached the bellhop, she said “Come in”. Inside they let us explore the lobby and library. We could really get close to these wonderful details that you would never notice on a normal day. Besides the up close experience, the bellhops did a great job conducting their tours describing facts and secrets. For instance, did you know that the couch and two chairs represent the ghostly inhabitants of that fallen elevator? The following are some photos I took. Unfortunately, I only had my phone, so the quality of the photos aren’t as nice as I would have hoped. Enjoy!
The Hollywood Tower Hotel
Registration
An antique case of cigars left behind from that fateful night.
The Registry (Signed by Imagineers who created the Attraction)
1939 Newspaper Details
A unique point of view of the lobby’s centerpiece.
Items to represent the ghostly Mother.
An antique lamp on the dinner table.
The guests left in a rush after the incident occurred.
This person was enjoying a cup of tea that night.
This person had a feeling something bad was going to happen. The occurrence happened right in the middle of her sentence.
This cup of tea belongs to the setting representing the ghostly maid who looks after the young starlet.
The maid’s setting.
A Shirley Temple doll left behind by the ghostly child. She didn’t forget her Mickey Mouse doll however!
This represents the ghostly Father from that night in 1939.
Today marks the 10th anniversary of one of the most popular attractions in all of the Disneyland Resort: “The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror”!
Opening 10 years after its original counterpart, the Tower of Terror possesses all the things that make a great Disney attraction. From every cob web to every leaky pipe, the details are fantastic.
I would now like to share with you a few photographs we have taken over the years showcasing the grand hotel in all its eerie glory.
Here is a new thing we are going to try out. Over the years, I have collected tons and tons of Disney photos from the internet, books, thrift shops, antique stores, ebay… So I thought that every week, I would post a picture I have collected.
Ready for the first photo? Here we go!
It All Started With a Mouse.
If you want to request that we post a photo of a certain attraction, character, film, or what have you, please let us know and we’ll do our best to please you.
Hey there! We’ve got a podcast. Maybe you’ve heard it — maybe not? This is more of an announcement about where you might find the podcast in its various forms. A cheat-sheet, if you will.
We try to make it pretty easy to find but there are just so many options and here they are:
Right Here! We added a “Podcast” button to the top menu so you can easily find the podcast embedded in the page. Right now, Google Chrome doesn’t seem to love playing back the file but Safari, Firefox, and Internet Explorer seem to work fine. Safari on the iPhone and iPad seem to work well, as well.
iTunes!I absolutely LOVE Apple’s Podcast app. It allows you to subscribe to your favorite podcasts whether they’re in the iTunes store or not. It’ll alert you when there are new episodes and it’s the easiest way to see linked and photo content we embed into the episodes.
YouTube! They have made it very Podcast friendly and we have committed to creating and uploading HD versions of our podcasts with embedded content and links when we can. You can subscribe here and they even let us make a “Podcasts!” playlist so you can play them all at once. Subscribe, won’t you?
SoundCloud!We have a free SoundCloud account so you’ll only ever have the last two episodes available to you but you’re not that far behind anyway, right? This is another really easy way to listen to the podcast while on the go, on the metro, in your car, on a run — however you wanna hear it!
Stitcher!This is a booming podcast community and we couldn’t be happier to be a part of it.
And the rest… When we set up this podcast, I submitted the feed to anywhere and everywhere I could. That said, I have since forgotten many of the places but if you have a way to listen, we have a way to hear it. Have your own favorite podcast app that we didn’t list? You can use this link HERE and subscribe to just the feed, if you like. It’s that simple.
Thanks for listening everyone! It’s been a lot of fun hearing your comments and feedback about it and they sure are fun to make. Even I feel like I learn a lot while recording and we hope it’s coming across as entertaining. As long as it’s fun, we’ll keep making them!
This year’s D23 Expo has come to a close and boy was it a wonderful time. There was plenty to see and do throughout the three days. In this post, I will break down my favorite things that I experienced.
JOURNEY INTO IMAGINEERING:
This was by far my favorite thing in the entire expo. Imagineering set up a replica of their headquarters in Glendale. Inside, they had areas showcasing every aspect of Imagineering.
The pavilion began with a preshow video that was just incredible. At one point, doors open to reveal the Hatbox Ghost from The Haunted Mansion! It was very exciting to see him. Once the preshow was over, a different set of doors opened and you were free to do whatever you want.
The Hatbox Ghost in the Preshow Video
The first highlight of the pavilion was getting to see the concept model for a scene from Western River Expedition.
This attraction was to be on the same scale as Pirates of the Caribbean and was to be featured at Walt Disney World. But alas it never happened. Fans demanded their own version of Pirates of the Caribbean instead. This is probably the best attraction to never happen and to see a model up close really shows you how incredible it would have been.
Then came the Imagineering Art Library which held the two most famous art pieces in Disneyland history. To see these originals in person is a real treat.
The first was the drawing that Herb Ryman created of Disneyland so Walt could bring it to the bankers to fund Disneyland.
By Herb Ryman
The second was the painting that Walt Disney showcased on his Disneyland television show when he announced Disneyland.
This photo is of a copy of the original. The Peter Ellenshaw original was on display at D23.
The painting was done by Peter Ellenshaw and this was the first time it was available for the public to see. But the best part by far was when the lights dimmed down and black lights came on to show Disneyland at night. Ellenshaw painted over all the windows, lanterns, and other things that give off light with special black light paint to give the feeling of night time at Disneyland. It was something I will never forget.
Then came the area about audio animatronics. The first thing one notices is a replica of the Hatbox Ghost from the Haunted Mansion!
He was built off of the same animatronic skeleton used for the Auctioneer in Pirates and he moved so fluently. He even breathed! Let’s hope one day they bring him back.
Also in that area, they had the barker bird from Walt Disney World’s Pirates of the Caribbean and guests were able to control his movements!
The other highlight for me from this area was the animatronic heads of two different Pirates of the Caribbean. Can you tell which Pirates they are?
The next highlight for me was seeing the original statues from Snow White’s Grotto at Disneyland.
The statues were replaced with replicas in 1982 as weather conditions started to take its toll on the originals. It was really great seeing these up close.
Next came my favorite piece in the pavilion. They had Abraham Lincoln’s animatronic head from Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.
This is one of the current heads being used, which has more lifelike functions than any animatronic ever created. And the head would even talk!
But then there is El Fortuno!
El Fortuno is the most sophisticated and realistic audio animatronic ever created. Not only does he move more realistically than any other animatronic ever created, but he makes eye contact with you also! He is performed by a live actor and his movements are being copied in real time. I was in awe looking at him.
Other things throughout the pavilion I loved seeing were concept models for The Land and Spaceship Earth.
Concept Model of The Land Pavilion at Epcot.
The interior of The Land concept model.
Concept model for Spaceship Earth at Epcot.
Another fun thing that they did inside the pavilion was a scavenger hunt called the Adventure Trading Co. It was all Adventureland themed, and you would get a telegram with instructions on it. You had to go throughout the expo (and even at one point to Trader Sam’s) and finish the tasks given. Afterwards you would be given a trinket called a juju. All the juju’s look really neat and many of them reference different Disney attractions. The game was there to be tested to see if it would do well at Disneyland. I think it would do well. It was awfully fun and very addicting.
The jujus we collected.
PANELS:
The first panel that I saw at D23 this year was about the creation of Mystic Manor at Hong Kong Disneyland.
Albert the Monkey from Mystic Manor was on Display!
They went over every scene from the attraction and showed video on how they created it. For those that don’t know, Mystic Manor is Hong Kong Disneyland’s own version of the Haunted Mansion. It opened this year, and I’m in love with it. Let’s hope one day I will be able to see it in person.
The next panel I saw of the Voices of the Parks, which is always my favorite panel.
Corey Burton and Mark Silverman meet fans after the panel.
This year featured the return of voice actors Mark Silverman (Rod Serling in the Tower of Terror), Corey Burton (Your Ghost Host in the Haunted Mansion Holiday), BJ Ward (The voice of the Peoplemover), and Bill Rogers (The Voice of Disneyland). Along with them, we got a few new voice actors including a couple of the spanish speaking spiel voices! They were all really great and funny. But as we only had one hour with these voice actors, it seemed too short. Where other panels seem to drag, the voice panel always seems to not have enough time.
The final panel that I saw was called Working with Walt. This panel featured Imagineers, Marty Sklar, Bob Gurr, Alice Davis, and X. Atencio. It was a real joy to hear their personal stories about working with Walt Disney and creating the best attractions known to man. My favorite part was when Atencio sang Yo Ho. X. Atencio wrote the entire script for Pirates and Haunted Mansion. I’d say he’s a real talent!
Alice Davis and X. Atencio
IN THE ARENA:
Saturday night I saw something really special. They put on a live concert featuring Richard Sherman and Alan Menken.
It was incredible seeing these two legends perform all their classic Disney hits. Richard Sherman had the moment of the night for me, when he played Feed the Birds. He got a huge standing ovation after that one. Also, when Sherman performed Spoonful of Sugar, BJ Novak and Jason Schwartzman came out to sing along. They play the Sherman Brothers in the upcoming film Saving Mr. Banks.
The night was capped off by Sherman and Menken performing A Whole New World and it’s a small world together. It was a night I will never forget.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Overall, it was a very successful D23. I did think the layout was a bit odd and more confusing than it was in years past and I wasn’t too impressed with anything besides the Imagineering pavilion. But even though, it was still worth it. Also it sure was crowded the entire time. The biggest lines being to shop at the stores inside. I heard people waited 6 hours to go to the Disney store! What could one possibly need that bad?
But the 2013 D23 Expo really was special, as it is every year. They do an excellent job by letting you in to the creating process of their work and it is something you can’t take for granted. I never thought in a million years I would be able to see some of the stuff that I saw this year. Thank you Disney for putting all of this together.
With the D23 Expo 2013 only two days away, I wanted to give some advice and recommendations about how to enjoy your time at the Anaheim Convention Center.
First off, arrive early. If there is a panel that you are interested in seeing, make sure you are there early. Be there maybe 2 hours early. If you are interested in the Walt Disney Studios presentation which is Saturday at 10:30am, I recommend getting in line as early as possible. Lines will begin to form at 5am and that’s when you should be there if you want to see this one.
Now I know I get a bit overwhelmed with the whole event because there is so much I want to see and do, but just take a breath and have fun. Just know you can’t see everything, but you’ll still have a wonderful time. There will be plenty of exhibits and vendors to enjoy for hours on end and you will be sure to get into a panel or two.
The following are panels and presentations that I would like to see:
1. Mayhem, Mischief, and Monkeys: The Magic of Mystic Manor – A panel discussion about Hong Kong Disneyland’s newest attraction inspired by the Haunted Mansion. – Friday August 9th at 10:30am
2. Undiscovered Disneyland – Tony Baxter and Josh Shipley will present never before seen footage from Disneyland dating back to the 1950s. – Friday August 9th at 12:30pm
3. Voices of the Disney Parks – The people that bring Disney Parks to life with their voices will be there to discuss and share stories. – Saturday August 10th at 2:00pm
4. Richard M. Sherman and Alan Menken: The Disney Songbook – These two Disney Legends will be performing many of their classic pieces. – Saturday August 10th at 6:30pm
5. Walt Disney Imagineering’s 60th: Working with Walt – Disney Imagineers from Walt’s era will discuss what it was like to work with the man himself. – Sunday August 11th at 9:30am
6. Walt Disney Imagineering’s 60th: Craft of Creativity – CurrentDisney Imagineers will discuss what it is like to work as an Imagineer. – Sunday August 11th at 1:00pm
Those are all the panels I am going to try and see this upcoming weekend. For a full schedule of events, click the link below:
Disneyland opened in 1955 and had created something no one had ever seen. It was a wonderland that they saw unfold in front of their eyes on the Disneyland TV show but they really couldn’t grasp it until they saw it. And many only saw it a few times growing up. I know my parents probably only went to Disneyland once as children. My mother grew up out-of-state so that’s not uncommon, but my father was born in Los Angeles and grew up in Torrance, CA – a short drive to Anaheim. I was born in Los Angeles in ’84 and grew up in an annual pass starting with Fantasmic! and had one thru the ’90s. I then bought my own in college along with so many of my friends that also had them – and almost all of us have kept those APs active since.
Our Disneyland Group – All Passholders
This was a new phenomenon that had never been seen before. Yes, even though Disneyland is approaching its 58th anniversary, the paradigm is still shifting. It’s likely slowing down at this point but Disney Parks have had to adjust to this trend of life-time APs. Society has shifted so drastically since the 1950s. We are living in a world where if we want something, a majority of us are lucky enough to just get that thing. For those of us with parents that saw Disneyland as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Disneyland became a weekly activity. We are doing what they couldn’t – and we love it!
Unfortunately, this has led to crazy crowds at the parks due to locals getting off work, out of school, etc. to enjoy the luxury that is Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park. What I’m saying is: the price hikes are mainly our fault and I, for one, take responsibility for it.
For out-of-towners, like I mentioned in the last blog, Disneyland is still a once-a-year and even once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And Disney’s reputation of being the crème de la crème of vacation destinations makes $90-$95/day expected and less of a shock. However, what I’ve been seeing on the blogs and twitter feeds is that the APs are hurting the most here. So much so that even my family has downgraded to just the SoCal pass from the Premier we had just last year. And I think we started last year with Deluxe AP last year and upgraded for our WDW trip.
Disneyland is Your Land
The unfortunate truth is that Disney Parks need to be able to plan for this influx of APs and vacationers. At DLR more than WDW, the APs descend upon the park and tie up parking with single-passenger vehicles, tie up entrances with sheer numbers, and fill the lines when merging numbers with single-day park guests. We wanted to go to Disneyland more because we could — but are we sure we should?
Friday, the blogosphere started theorising an impending hike to the cost of Disney parks admission rates from single days to annual passes. Saturday, everyone’s fears were realised and the apparent rage from APs was loud and clear. To the casual single-day purchasers, it was just another day as people write-off Disney parks as already being astronomically expensive.
This post is to try to take a look at what’s going on here with no internal knowledge whatsoever. Just an observation and some theories about what’s going on here and what it means for APs and the parks. And, perhaps, even stick up for the parks a little bit.
Exponential Expansion!
Cars Land, Fantasy Faire, New Fantasyland, International Expansion, etc. Parks & Resorts, as far as I can tell, operate under the same umbrella (I’m looking at you, Aulani.) Disney Parks and Resorts have really expanded in the last few years. From a business standpoint, the money Disney makes from TV, movies, games, etc. is recycled back into that entertainment division. Same with ESPN and other Disney-owned properties. Those things influence trends in the parks, etc. but for the most part, the parks themselves act as their own division of the company, and rightfully so.
Disney Parks and Resorts are notorious for spread-sheet marketing strategies and planning. “Will this _____ themed attraction bring more people into the parks?” Unfortunately for Disneyland and Disney Parks enthusiasts (APs), the variable at the moment is movie franchises. These franchises make so much for the company, the money people look at the possibility of marketing it in different ways. So much-so that they go with the Star Wars model now of building franchises around marketing strategies — and it has been working.
Radiator Springs Racers
Cars Land, Little Mermaid, Be Our Guest restaurant, etc. We are seeing this on both coasts. No new ideas a la Pirates of the Caribbean in 1967 where there was nothing quite like it and was started with an idea as simple as “how much fun would it be to plunder with pirates!?” It was fun and became an über successful attraction that begat an über successful film franchise which then, in turn, begat an über successful film adaptation to the original ride.
All of this said — there are people in the parks — hoards of them! The strategy is working and even with the negative PR from, unfortunately, the most dedicated fans, there’s still hours of lines at all of the parks indicating to the financial folk that something is working well.
If we were to go back to prices from just 20 years ago where you could get a single day for $28.50, adjusted for inflation today would be just $44.60. Then, take into account the people who aren’t coming to Disney Parks because of the (now) $92 (at Disneyland — $95 at Magic Kingdom at WDW) and start to factor those people in at a would-be $44.60 and you’ve got capacity days year-round with barely any room for us APs at a would be rate of $313 ($199 for a premium pass in 1993).
Let’s look at the positives that come out of this:
Crowd Control
Crowd Control. While the APs hate these price hikes because we are long-time devotees to the parks, the single day tickets will still be flying off the shelves at a steady rate and tourist traffic will still drive the parks into the proverbial black (not sure how profitable or not that parks actually are). APs descend upon the parks at a rapid pace as the days get longer and longer and this affects crowds all week-long. TDA in particular has their work cut out for them and while I may not like it, I understand what they’re doing and have to respect it. It’s all for a better guest experience, in my opinion.
Still Relatively Affordable
It’s still a bargain in some respects. If you’re still a super devoted Disney aficionado, chances are you have a Premium AP. The price difference between the Premium and Premier pass is $310 on the west coast. That more-than pays for itself after 3 days with a park-hopper option if you were to go to WDW. Unfortunately, that’s the only tier in which it’s affordable. The difference between a Deluxe pass and a Premiere pass is $480 which wouldn’t pay for itself with even a 10-day park hopper pass at WDW. WDW has a different AP structure with only two options that I can see: Regular AP and Premium. The difference between the Premium Pass (now $776.39) and a Premier pass is $202.61 which is $7.39 less than a 2-day Park Hopper option at DLR. I would assume that any WDW passholder wanting to visit the DLR would come for more than 2 days and that would, again, more than pay for itself. However, again, the regular AP (now 648.59) at WDW is $330.41 less than the Premier pass and that wouldn’t be cheaper than getting a 5-day Park Hopper to DLR for $300. So, really, the Premier pass is still a bargain if you: a.) already have a trip planned to the opposite coast, b.) plan a stay for at least 3 days at WDW or 2 at DLR, and c.) already have a Premium Pass. Otherwise, it might be the better option to buy your park-hoppers — and that’s not even including hotel accommodations!
New Attractions!
New Attractions. While we don’t see a ton of movement on this front, let’s look at the stuff we do have at the parks and rejoice that there’s new stuff to do everywhere and refurbishments happening elsewhere. Unfortunately, those are taking precedence over some things like OSHA requirements and safety concerns (read: Space Mountain and Alice in Wonderland at Disneyland). We are all hardcore Disney nerds and we KNOW that new Tomorrowland and Frontierland attractions at Disneyland are in the Blue Sky stages at WDI so what are we so upset about?
It just wouldn’t be possible to handle those crowds. In another post, I’ll talk about why I think crowds have changes so drastically in the last 20 years and how, really, we are kind of to blame. But hey, we love Disneyland and that’s why the parks are more crowded than ever!
To looking more like this:
