Category — t. Disney’s MyMagic+ Project and Expansion Plans

RUMORS OF BRAZIL COMING TO EPCOT

The second half of last week was abuzz with rumors of discussions between Disney and the Brazilian government regarding a Brazil Pavilion in Epcot’s World Showcase.

I first noticed it here, which referenced this, which in turn cited this.

This is just a rumor right now—and for almost 25 years, every single rumor about a new country coming to Epcot has been false. Based on that, you should probably stop reading this now.

(If you are in the mood for unfounded rumors that are more fun, check out this instead.)

On the other hand…

MAYBE BRAZIL REALLY IS COMING TO EPCOT

[Read more →]

(This is the second page of this two-page April 1 article. For the first page, click here.)

THE ROUTE OF THE NEW NEXTGEN HIGH SPEED RAIL AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

To meet its performance potential, high-speed rail requires some specific infrastructure.

Details include a dedicated right of way; sufficient length to accelerate to top speeds and decelerate at station stops; broad, sweeping curves that start with a large radius and gradually decrease it (that is, spiral curves); and substantial electric power.

The Wildlife Express Train currently operates as a one way loop with two stations. The portion of the loop that gets guests from the rest of Disney’s Animal Kingdom to Rafiki’s Planet Watch will remain unchanged, as no one is in a hurry to get there.

The high speed component will replace the part of the loop that currently gets guests out of Rafiki’s Planet Watch.

The need for length to accelerate means that the routing will extend well out of Walt Disney World; it also means that a large curve will be required to get the trains back onto the property.

These points, not disrupting key Disney properties, the topography of nearby lakes, and other factors have led Disney to propose the northeast-oriented routing on the image to the right.

[Read more →]

OPTION TO LEAVE RAFIKI’S PLANET WATCH AT 237 MPH TO BE CREATED

April 1, 2011: Sources at Walt Disney World have confirmed that Disney’s NextGen Project will include conversion of the outbound portion of the Animal Kingdom’s Wildlife Express Train to high-speed rail.

When the conversion is completed, guests will be able to leave Rafiki’s Planet Watch at speeds topping out at 237 miles per hour.

Until now, the NextGen Project has been principally understood as having three components:

1. An opportunity for Disney World guests to extend the period when they are confused about exactly what is and is not a snack on the dining plan from just their time at the resort to as long as six months before their arrival.

2. New queueless queues with expansive play areas where small children can be lost. As a result, signs such as that at the right are going up all over Disney World (the espresso is NOT a snack on the Dining Plan).

3. An incentive for baseless speculation.

The addition of high speed rail clarifies the NextGen picture. Moreover, the proposed routing of the new high speed rail line presents interesting additional opportunities for Disney to redevelop the far–sometimes very far–northeastern reaches of Disney World.

[Read more →]

THE NEXTGEN QUEUE AT WINNIE THE POOH

While the main features of Disney’s NextGen Project will unfold slowly, one aspect—enhancing the experience of the waiting lines for certain rides—has been showing up for a while, dating back at least to the Space Mountain refurbishment.

These enhancements don’t make the lines any less long—in some special cases they may even make the wait longer, see below.

Rather, they just make waiting in line more fun.

NEW QUEUES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD MAKE WAITING IN LINE MORE FUN

The new queue at The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh in Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom is a great example of an improvement to the waiting experience. [Read more →]

THE LATEST ON WALT DISNEY WORLD’S NEXTGEN PROJECT

In Disney’s February 2011 investor conference, Parks and Resorts head Tom Staggs gave a little more detail about the initiatives that have become known as Disney’s NextGen Project.

(See this for prior thoughts on NextGen.)

He described what he called “a version of FASTPASS for the entire vacation.”

It would include being able to handle from home before even leaving for Walt Disney World reserving times to see attractions, setting times for character interactions, and reserving seats and times for theater-style shows.

Moreover, hotel keys would be in your hands before you left as well.

The upshot of all this would be less time spent waiting in line, less uncertainty about whether or not you’ll be able to see an attraction, less fuss checking in to hotels, and an overall better and more personalized experience.

Staggs noted that it will be some time before these features become available, and did not hint as to when that time would be…

Stagg’s presentation was largely consistent with this site’s previous speculation about Disney’s NextGen Project, without confirming any specific thoughts other than those noted above.

DISNEY WORLD’S NEW SHOW THE MAGIC, THE MEMORIES AND YOU

When Walt Disney World announced it would have a new show at the Magic Kingdom that would include projection of guest photos onto Cinderella’s Castle, I was underwhelmed.

The tie to Disney’s current ad campaign made me think this would be an uninteresting marketing stunt, and was the castle forecourt so un-crowded before Wishes that more people needed to be enticed to it?

I suffered from a failure of the imagination. Disney World did not. The Magic, the Memories, and You is spectacular.

MORE ABOUT THE MAGIC THAN ABOUT YOU [Read more →]