AndrewRnR

Universal is certainly playing for the long term - buying Wet N' Wild's land as well as building a new parking garage seem to be a pretty clear indicators to me that current management is already thinking far out and how they can expand. Will it ever overthrow Disney? No, but as others have said that's not the goal. I always thought people would do Disney than maybe do one or two other days - usually either SeaWorld, Universal or beach. With Harry Potter 1.0, Universal help people who were going to Disney to pick Universal for their non-Disney day. I think the goal with HP 2.0 is to steal another day or two from Disney. If I had to guess we are going to see Universal focus on improving (not in the physical sense of saying their hotel rooms need updating) much like how Disney has done with the onsite resort experience with everything from MyMagic+ to Magical Express. Disney banks on guests staying at their hotels, eating at their restaurants when they arn't at their parks.

Calling them successful is a stretch - they may have got the bands to cancel but I believe most of them only had 10k. Cheap Trick's petition only had 3,674 supporters - Bayside Stadium holds more people than that. Heck, for a park that will draw around 20k on a Bands, Brew, BBQ having 10k people, most who probably don't ever go to Sea World, sign a petition is a drop in the bucket. I know someone who did some rearch and found, by using Facebook's ad software, that very few people like both a certain band and Blackfish compared to liking a that same band and Sea World. The bands are cancelling for PR. I haven't dug deep enough but I wouldn't be surprised if at the very least Cheap Trick and Heart have the same management/agent. When was the last time Cheap Trick made headlines? 1980? Cancel one show and suddenly they are a top story on the AP wire.

Sea World pulled the entire Bands, Brew, BBQ band listing... hmm. I'm guessing they are calling each band to vet the contract so it doesn't become weekly headlines if each decide to pull out (and/or making the cancel clause in the contract a very hefty fine). Plenty of bands still on the bill. As I mentioned before I'm not surprised the veteran acts are pulling out - they can afford to. The younger acts who don't have millions in royalties pouring in from 30 years of music can't afford to pull out. I have to disagree cutting the bands out makes it look like Sea World has given in. If I were them I'd be searching the Twitter-verse or looking back to artists who have supported Sea World in the past, the bigger name the better, and even over-paying them if needed to show up and play... show the world that the show goes on even without B(and C)-list bands cancelling. If they can get some BIG name to come out as say "yes I AM playing Sea World" that could be huge.

Great update. There are many things I hated about working at Magic Kingdom and having to get up way too early to power up Big Thunder Mountain but seeing the sun rise over the park/castle always made up for it. And great to see Rich in the video - we were managers together back some time ago and he has more passion (in a non-fanboy way) for Disney than any one I met.

I'm as big of a classic rock fan as anyone but thinking these bands are huge draws is a stretch. I've made it to most Bands, Brew, and BBQ concerts in the last 4/5 years and rarely is the few thousand seat stadium even completely full. Doesn't mean they haven't put out great music they just aren't the draw they used to be. I know a few people in the concert industry and I agree with their thoughts on the situation.... either you'll see a big, big name step up to fill one of the slots to "support" Sea World and/or some up and coming band that doesn't have a catalog of old hits to fill their bank accounts will gladly fill up the spot. Bands today only really make money from tours, these "older" bands can afford to say no to shows, and I'm sure some young bands' management quickly contacted Sea World to try to fill the spot. I wouldn't mind seeing Sea World take a less apologetic approach to the situation. The comments from the Heart cancellation were great IMO ("While we're disappointed a small group of misinformed individuals was able to deny fans what would have been great concerts..."). Sea World has a GREAT product to offer with a loyal following - I don't think it would be PR suicide to point out things such as how Willie Nelson (or today with Joan Jett) have played Sea World/Busch parks before and how well the crowd enjoyed their show. I know it is a fine line in the world of PR, but I sometimes think Sea World is getting bullied and is afraid to stand up for themselves.

I was there the other night - while it is sad to see some old items go the replacements are awesome. The Volcano Burger (chili, Fritos, "volcanic" cheese and guac on top) was awesome!

Agreed. The band has played at Busch parls before... so guess they rely on movies to figure out what to believe in? The sad/ironic thing is CNN is the news outlet that picked up the story first... Who released Blackfish? CNN. It probably is a whole different debate (that I don't want to start) but their was a great op-ed recently in the Orlando paper how with a major news outlet behind the documentary it seems to strangely stir up news stories (which can mention the movie) any time buzz starts to fade off.

I take the Screamscape/Mice Chat comments with a grain of salt (as I do most Disney things from Mice Chat). Sure the roll out isn't perfect but I think long term it will be quite a huge success. MM+ has a lot of upfront costs but will continue to generate large amounts incremental revenue for years to come. Despite being over budget, Disney is doing a good job in rolling it out - they aren't rushing it as they may have with some other program roll outs. When I switched my annual pass they had literally probably a hundred people waiting to help. Every turnstile has a extra cast member to assist with tickets and wristbands. Most companies, when over budget, would quickly cut any extra service positions. And just because a rumored Star Wars land has been put on "hold" doesn't mean nothing is happening.(let's be real... for some other sites saying/claiming Studios would be nearly completely rebuilt with both Carsland AND Star Wars land was a pipe dream to begin with) - a new roller coaster opens in the next few months, a new resort addition, complete overhaul of DTD and Avatar Land plus all the little updates and projects all over. Not too shabby of an expansion plan if you ask me. As I said if we look back in 10 years from now I firmly believe the general consensus will be "despite the launch setbacks, MM+ is a proven success". Fanboys may complain, but when it works the guest seem to dig it and the industry certainly seemed to eat it up when WDW's president presented on it at IAAPA last week.

^Maybe I'm missing the sarcasm but GCI didn't change the ride besides the trains. And from everything I heard these are brand new trains not rebuilds of any old products.

^^I wouldn't put too much stock in where promo videos are/what's in the background. Companies use "real" type landscapes all the times as it is easier to market than a ride in a field... and for 95% of the people who look at the video they would have no idea that it is a certain park.

^How has Gravity Group left the game? They announced 4 new coasters today and have opened 5 in the last 3 seasons. Considering they only have 10 operating currently that's quite a bit of growth as of recent. My guess for the Gravity Group announcement is it will be train/details on the Wooden Warrior style coaster going into Story Land next year.

Most booths serve some kind of beverage... especially later in the day when business turns more social (the last hour is usually the best...!). Disney builds very little in house these days so I would guess what you saw is correct. Generally it appears that most is in-house because they usually are pretty strict (or so I hear) about letting other companies say they did work for Disney.

Did I miss something or do we know it is Orlando for sure? While a good guess would be Orlando, somewhere like Daytona or Miami wouldn't surprise me.

Maybe I'm jaded but I'm not sure retracking will solve the death-like experience of the ride. I heard rumors saying it was "ok" the first week of operation last year but by late summer when I rode Hades the entire ride was miserable. You can have experts rebuild it but if no one takes care of it...

The timing actually makes some sense... get all the rides up for sale and let interest brew for a week or so before IAAPA where you can talk all about them to potential clients. Cypress Gardens closed right around when IAAPA started in 2008 and I believe that was not by accident as many of the rides were sold that week at the Expo.

^Kumba and Montu both have 4 trains (one is always in refurb - and it seems they usually only run 2 at a time) so I'm sure that helps keep the trains in the best condition.

In regards to the comments about the "boxes that feature a securing device" at BGT... it must be something new but want to give the park props for it. At Cheetah Hunt (only coaster I rode that day so it may be at others) they now have complimentary "boxes with a securing devices" at the station platform in addition to the usual cubby holes. They are really small - but perfect size for locking up a phone/wallet/something small. It is great since I hate putting my phone away before getting in a long line but don't like leaving it in the cubby hole. Small win by BGT!

I honestly think the true limit simply will come down to money. Money to design, build and implement a ride that is "comfortable " (as is riders don't black out - think about the speeds and height planes go but you don't "feel" the forces due to the design of the cabin - what's not to say a similar approach could be taken to coasters?).

I fell for the, what I like to call a near-con, of the park's hotels. The website had decent images and made the room sound good - we go to check and our room is over a mile away and the only "Mt Olympus" connection to the room was the key and room number sign. Everything on the inside, from the card on the phone to notice on back of door called it the "Pine Hotel." The room didn't even have AC (unless you count the small window unit in the bathroom). Seems like they buy up hotels, throw their eletronic lock system on the doors and call it their own without switching out anything on the inside.

In regards to Kinzel I honestly think things got stall and instead of stepping down or changing it he let it continue. He did some amazing things in regards to growing the company (and the rides - let's not forget he was the man who pushed for Magnum to be higher, thought up Dragster on Millennium Force's opening day, etc). However he was the first CEO of the company and held that position for well over 20 years - I'm a firm believer that no institution should be ran by the same leader for that long - it just doesn't foster new ideas.

Just wanted to throw some more love out there for Rocco's Tacos. Great food, drinks and atmosphere. Seriously if you are visiting Orlando you must escape the parks for a few hours to get there. It is located somewhat between Sea World and Universal - only 5/10 mins away from either. Just a heads up... Friday and Saturday nights can get CRAZY busy so be warned the wait for a table may be crazy long.

I'll answer this in two-part (and I know I'll take some crap from some on ths second part...): Visiting: For the theme park nerd Central Florida (including Tampa) may hands down be the best spot in the world. Even the lowest "quality" park (which I'm not sure what that would be just saying in general) is better than most parks in the US. Heck, I think there is an argument BGT has one of the best coaster collections for a park. Living: I know I'll get some crap for this but maybe since I've live in Orlando (in the tourist area nonetheless) for 7 years and spent many of those years working in the parks I'm actually anixous to move out... to SoCal (I know, I know it isn't all that...). Sure it is AWESOME having so many parks within in minutes (I can literally see 5 parks on my drive to work... and looking out my office window I can see four) but there isn't tons of culture here (though I will admit north of downtown there is some) and as a big sports fan Orlando sucks. I will say Orlando keeps surprising me and even in my years here I have seen the city really get better overall and many awesome, non-theme park things, are on the drawing board for the city so we'll see maybe I'll change my mind.

You wouldn't even have to tear down Breakers Express. The park owns quite a bit of property off point from up near the entrance to the causeway to down south of Castaway Bay. Even just recently as in last year, they purchased a large parcel of land near Castaway Bay. There has always been myths in the Cedar Point fan circles (or at least there was back many years ago thanks to an article in the local newspaper that quoted someone at the park about buying land) that the park owns a large number of land parcels going as far south as Route 2. The Sandusky Airport, which is a large amount of land near the park, has always been a the rumored spot for more expansion or potential site to move Camper Villages (save for Lighthouse Point) off property.

Just book it - not a lot to risk. There is just as strong of a chance of crazy weather hitting you wherever you live than in Tampa. And tropical storm/depression is the same thing as a hurricane just weaker - you would know several days out. Thunderstorms happen anywhere and everywhere - and when they do in Florida it usually isn't an all day rain. Don't stress too much over the weather - what happens, happens, you are booking a trip to one of the best parks in the country don't forget to enjoy it!

^If I knew if there would be a hurricane or what the weather would be during that time frame I would be quite rich! All kidding aside while it falls in hurricane season I wouldn't worry about it. Most of the country seems to have this myth that Florida is always under a hurricane watch - I've been here 6 years and have never had a hurricane hit (as I like to say more hurricanes have hit NYC in the last 6 years than Florida) It is usually even more rare for Tampa. The "good" thing about hurricanes is they don't just pop up - you'll know a few days out, if not more, so if there was one coming you'll be able to rearrange accordingly. I certainly wouldn't hold off on booking for fear of one - most travel companies are pretty good about letting you rearrange if an area goes under a hurricane watch.