Greg Maletic: Walt Disney World Trip Report, Part 1
Page 3 of 3
Hyper-Marketing, Part 1.
Nothing new here, but the trend of forcing guests to walk through gift
shops at the end of an attraction is unacceptable and cheapens the experience. A
plea that no one at Disney will listen to: don't do this.
It's A Small World.
It's heretical to say this, but here I go: Walt Disney World's "It's A Small World" is the best. I'm not going to make any apologies for the indoor boarding area: of course, it's not nearly as nice as Disneyland's outdoor one, though the recent enhancements have reduced that gap. But Orlando's version absolutely nails everything else. Disneyland's version of the ride occasionally hits an artistic off-note--the sea serpent at the beginning, and postcards at the end don't have the same feel as the Mary Blair/Rolly Crump interior. Another positive omission in Florida: no mermaids making gurgling noises. And in general, the show scenes are richer visually, with more going on. It's a more intense experience, and it's now my favorite version of the ride.
It's heretical to say this, but here I go: Walt Disney World's "It's A Small World" is the best. I'm not going to make any apologies for the indoor boarding area: of course, it's not nearly as nice as Disneyland's outdoor one, though the recent enhancements have reduced that gap. But Orlando's version absolutely nails everything else. Disneyland's version of the ride occasionally hits an artistic off-note--the sea serpent at the beginning, and postcards at the end don't have the same feel as the Mary Blair/Rolly Crump interior. Another positive omission in Florida: no mermaids making gurgling noises. And in general, the show scenes are richer visually, with more going on. It's a more intense experience, and it's now my favorite version of the ride.
Cinderella Castle vs. Dream Along With Mickey.
Every time I wanted to walk through Cinderella Castle, it was closed off,
thanks to the "Dream Along With Mickey" show staged there every few hours. To
me, walking through the castle to Fantasyland is a defining experience at a
Magic Kingdom park; staging a show isn't an acceptable reason to close it.
Frontierland Revival...at least, partially.
Lots of activity in Frontierland, thanks to the Woody's Round-Up-themed
parade that danced through just about every time I made my way through the land.
I don't get all that excited about parades and the like, but I was happy to see
that Frontierland was getting some attention. It's seemed for a while like
management just doesn't know what do to with the place--in any of the parks--and
though a parade doesn't necessarily indicate that they -do- know what to do,
it's at least a step in the right direction.
Baseball Machines.
The loss of the vintage baseball machines in the Main Street
arcade--something that happened at least a decade ago--is a serious one, but
I was pleasantly surprised to find a single one still remaining, in
Casey's Corner. In a Main Street that has almost completely lost any sense of
"story," it was nice to find this one remnant.
Capital Improvements.
The newest additions to the park just don't cut it: Stitch, Laugh Floor,
the Playful Spot,and Aladdin's Magic Carpets are all among the weakest things in
the park. Disneyland fans have complained about that park suffering at the hands
of California Adventure enhancements; I think Florida fans can make a more
serious claim that their park has really lacked for capital improvement. The
park doesn't need more rides as much as it could use things to see and admire:
maybe a Skull Rock, a Snow White's Grotto...anything. Another plea that will
fall on deaf ears: bring back the Swan Boats. Orlando's Magic Kingdom has a
beautiful waterway that winds itself around the Hub and the Swiss Family
Treehouse; it would be great to take a boat ride and see those areas from a new
perspective.
Decorating the Magic Kingdom.
Halloween decorations were up. They looked nice, but felt out of place for
when I was visiting (end of September). Of course, it didn't take long to
realize why they were up: they're promotional tools for the revenue-generating
Not-So-Scary Halloween party.
I don't begrudge the fact that they decorate; I can appreciate that the
locals--and even the staff--enjoy it. That being said, I don't need to see
the Disney parks "decorated" for much of anything, be it Halloween or the Year
of a Million Dreams. Remember: these places came pre-decorated by design. I
typically only visit Walt Disney World every couple of years, and I'd prefer to
see the parks the way the designers wanted us to see them. I'll make an
exception for Christmas: the whole country decorates for Christmas; not
decorating Disney World would seem strange. But here, at the end of September, I
felt like I missed out on the Main Street I was supposed to see.
More to come in Part 2, including comments on the other parks, the hotels, dining, and some thoughts about the state of Walt Disney World in general!
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-- Greg Maletic
In addition to being a lifelong Disney park fan, Greg Maletic is a graphic designer and documentary film producer based out of San Francisco.
The opinions expressed by our guest columnists, and all of our columnists, do not necessarily represent the feelings of LaughingPlace.com or any of its employees or advertisers. All speculation and rumors about the future of Disneyland and the Walt Disney Company are just that - speculation and rumors - and should be treated as such.
-- Posted November 29, 2007
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