Disneyland Resort (DL, DLR, DCA) Discussion Thread

[Double0Kevin]

I'm excited to ride Indy again. It's hard to argue that it's a great ride, but it was showing it's age a lot the last few times I rode. It's amazing to me it's gone so long without a rehab of this caliber. It would be great to see them go in in the future and upgrade and enhance like adding the smoke ring effect or something completely new and cool to get it back to the forefront of dark rides, but I could see time and energy spent on other attractions that are in far more need of improvements.

 

On a separate note. When are they going to upgrade the drops on Tower of Terror. For the last 8 years I've lived in blissful ignorance that it was a good ride, having never been on Florida's. Now that I have ridden "Good Tower" I have pretty much lost any desire to ride DCA's until it's made better. The randomization of drop sequences leaving a heightened sense of fear and anticipation made that ride significantly superior.

[COASTER FREAK 11]

^They will not upgrade the drop sequence until they need something to fill a marketing gap. Such as if there is nothing thats going to be new for over 2 years, then they would implement it to fill the gap.

[Double0Kevin]

^Well in that case I'm crossing my fingers for the next couple of years. After the remodel of DCA, I don't see them adding much over the next few years (Maybe in DL, but not within DCA). Maybe ToT will be a filler in the next couple years before the mythical "Phase 2" starts...

[Someotherguyuser]

Hearing good things about the improved Indy! People love the build-your-own Troop Transport vehicle interactive feature in the queue! Uh-oh, it looks like a lot of people on YouTube are demanding the old, broken-down Indiana Jones back. I know they have remembered the ride that way in their childhood, but change can be for the better.

[WFChris]

^LOL Love it!

[Wes]

^^ But why did they have to turn Mara into Max Hedroom? Not everything has to look like Tron.

[dylanreich]

Indy is my favorite attraction at DL, so it'll be great to see the spruced up ride during the winter break. I'm now just looking forward to the rumored new Tomorrowland now that Cars Land is complete.

[SharkTums]

I actually heard the ride is so different now because they put you in a refrigerator in the queue line and then load the fridge on the vehicles. Then at the end an alien bursts out of Shia LaBeouf.

[dylanreich]

I actually heard the ride is so different now because they put you in a refrigerator in the queue line and then load the fridge on the vehicles. Then at the end an alien bursts out of Shia LaBeouf.

And then at the end of the ride Indy says, "next time, keep Lucas out of it okay?".

[jray21]

^^

 

Glad to see it getting a nice refresh. I'm interested to see how many things I forgot that have been broken for years!

Edited December 8, 2012 by jray21

[Wes]

I actually heard the ride is so different now because they put you in a refrigerator in the queue line and then load the fridge on the vehicles. Then at the end an alien bursts out of Shia LaBeouf.

 

When Indy says "Next time, you're wearing a blindfold" he was actually referring to going to a theatre to see Crystal Skull.

[SuperShawn]

I had totally spaced that this much needed rehab was being done, which makes it a nice bonus for my visit next week to the parks.

[cfc]

I actually heard the ride is so different now because they put you in a refrigerator in the queue line and then load the fridge on the vehicles. Then at the end an alien bursts out of Shia LaBeouf.

 

The fridges got cut from the budget. They just stuff everyone in giant Glad bags painted to look like Kelvinators.

[Top Thrill Dragster]

Got two rides on Indy today. The ride looks great! Here are some of the things I noticed:

 

The bug rooms projectors have all been upgraded to HD.

All the fire is back.

The fog is back in the lava pit.

The dart room has been slightly extended.

The jeeps now come in two colors, tan and army green.

 

 

 

The only effect that was not working on both of my rides was the boulder scene. Also, to me, the ride felt much tamer. I didn't get tossed around all that much compared to my rides before the rehab.

 

And for those using single rider, be prepared to wait. They have changed how they handle single riders and it really cripples that option for the ride. They will let 10-15 handicapped people into the safety video room, then let in 5 single riders, and then they fill up the remaining space in the safety video room with stand by guests. And this happens every 5-10 mins. The result is a single rider line that extends all the way down and past the exit turnstiles.

 

Overall glad it's back.

[dylanreich]

^That's a bummer about the single rider line. I guess this will become a fastpass-only ride from now on.

[jray21]

^I was really hoping that the queue was going to get some work on it. It's just such a mess at times (like Space Mountain at Disneyland). The FastPass line is hit or miss. With the same wait times, I've saved only 5 minutes with a FP, and sometimes 30. Single rider and the handicap lines had to cross the main lines, and you could tell the cast members hated it.

 

Oh well, at least the most important part, the ride itself, seems to have gotten a lot of great care! Can't wait to see it! Glad that all the fire effects are working, and the mist! I'd forgotten they even had the mist!

[Wes]

^ Yeah, the queueing set-up really needs work. They'd have to physically redesign how the standby and fastpass lines merge and function, which they probably don't want to spend money on. Indy is ripe for a Nextgen queue experience, so let's hope that happens and they do so reconfiguration.

[p0tat0]

the worst fastpass line right now is probably RSR. In the middle of the day, the line for FP extends outside the entrance.

 

It is a bit difficult to adjust lines that weren't made for single rider/FP. Disney tries their best. With Indy being a very popular attraction, its always going to be a chaotic IMO.

 

 

Im really glad the bug screens are in HD now. Last time I rode it, I was trying to figure out if it was out of focus or always been that way. I've been spoiled by HD!

[Coasterbp]

To be completely honest, as much as I like to use Fastpass at the parks, Indy's queue is just a disaster with them trying to shoehorn FP into it. The temple entrance is the biggest problem, with it only being wide enough for one line.

 

Even sending FP down the exit queue wouldn't work because it gets too narrow at times and I doubt that WDI would allow them to do it that way since you wouldn't be entering through the temple.

 

If they don't want to spend the money to do it right and redo the first 75% of the queue, the should just get ride of FP at Indy altogether. It's one queue I wouldn't mind waiting in a regular line for as it's one of the most detailed, in my opinion.

 

-=CoasterBP

[Double0Kevin]

^ I highly doubt it would ever happen, but I agree about getting rid of FP on Indy. I never use FP on Indy just because there is really no value to it. There have been times where you can get your FP cause the line is huge and totally full outside, but then you come back at your FP time and it's all within the indoor queue and you suddenly have no benefit to FP.

 

Maybe Nextgen would allow for some serious overhauls of the queue to fit in FP, but that seems like it would be a huge project that costs a ton.

[jedimaster1227]

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/12/big-thunder-mountain-railroad-to-close-january-7-for-refurbishment-at-disneyland-park/

 

In the normal course of a Disney Parks attraction’s lifespan, there are periods of time when it is necessary to close for a major refurbishment. You may recall that this was the case last year with the Matterhorn Bobsleds, which now looks better than ever with its fresh snowfall. Up next at Disneyland park, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will close January 7 for refurbishment, reopening in fall 2013.

 

Updates being made to the attraction will include:

• New ride vehicles (but don’t worry – they’ll still look like the trains that you know and love!)
  
• Track replacement (but the attraction will still follow its current course)
  
• Repainting portions of the mountain itself (Walt Disney Imagineering has once again carefully studied Bryce Canyon for inspiration)

We’ll have more updates on these and other aspects of the refurbishment throughout the year, but if you’d like to experience the “wildest ride in the wilderness” one more time before it begins, head on over to Disneyland park by January 6 – its last day of operation until fall 2013.

 

 

One price… multiple thrills… take home all the memories!

 

NEW! Disney Attractions+ now available at Walt Disney World® and Disneyland® Resorts.

With Attractions+ you can take home all your Attraction images, taken within a 14 day visit to the parks, for $44.95.

How does it work?

 

1. RIDE: Ride one of the participating Attractions

 

2. ASSOCIATE: Present your Attractions+ card at the Attraction Imaging Sales Center within 24 hours of riding to associate your photo

 

3. CLAIM: Visit DisneyPhotoPass.com and enter the ID on the back of the card.

 

4. DOWNLOAD: Go to “My Downloads” to access your Attractions+ photo downloads.

 

Disney Attractions+ is available for purchase at any of the participating Attractions.

 

Disneyland Participating Attractions: Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, California Screamin, Radiator Springs Racers, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror

 

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/12/in-park-social-media-program-expands-to-disneyland-park-with-launch-of-disneyland-today/

 

Disney California Adventure park regulars are raving about DCA Today, the official source for in-park updates and information. Since the park’s grand reopening this summer, DCA Today has answered questions and provided real-time tips to park guests via their favorite social networks. Many have asked about the same service for Disneyland park, and I’m excited to tell you that Disneyland Today is launching…well, today!

 

While at the resort, guests can follow Disneyland Today on Facebook or @DisneylandToday on Twitter to receive live park updates and information on their mobile devices. The Disneyland Today team will respond to guest questions, create special surprises and assist with service concerns. This popular, expanded program joins the Disney Parks Blog, the Disneyland Resort Facebook pages and the official @Disneyland Twitter feed to offer up-to-the-minute news and information about the Disneyland Resort.

[MrSum1_55]

Were there also additional plans to add dividers and individual lap bars to the trains? Usually, I am not too much of a fan of adding more restraints, but this might actually be better for the overall experience when not riding alone, as I would no longer have to worry about slamming into the person next to me.

[WFChris]

^I REALLY hope they don't take out some of the roughness of the ride, slamming into the other rider is part of the fun! Unless of course they put a random single rider next to you then it's a little weird.

 

As for the Attractions+ system, is this supposed to work WITH the Photopass? If I wanted to take home every official picture of me taken in the park, would I have to pay the $44.95 for attractions+ on top of any price I paid for PhotoPass? It's a clever way to make take-home photos hit the $100+ mark pretty easily if that's the case...

[Double0Kevin]

^ PhotoPass is free.

 

Attractions+ seems cool, but I feel like it's pretty limited. Only 5 attractions for $45 seems like quite a bit of money, and you don't even get a printed copy. All in all it seems cheaper to just buy the photos individually when you like them. Maybe in the future they will add more to it, like photo spots and what not. EDIT: Nevermind, they have that... It's PhotoPass +. Duh.

 

As for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, looking forward to seeing what is done with this. I assume the ride will stay mostly the same with just some typical sprucing up. I expect this to be more in line with Matterhorn's overhaul rather than Space Mountain's (with the exception of the new track thing). And speaking of new track, do you guys think it will be the same track style, or this replacement will see us getting the Vekoma track that is on Everest at DAK and Grizzly at HKDL? Then they could get those same trains with the individual lap bars and what not. Seems kind of crazy, I know, but the more I think about it, it makes sense.

Edited December 13, 2012 by Double0Kevin

[WFChris]

^ PhotoPass is free.

 

Uhh, looking at PhotoPass is free, if you actually want anything from it you have to pay. Thanks for not answering the question. Maybe I should rephrase.

 

If I select the Unlimited PhotoPass option, would I have to pay the extra $44.95 to include the On-Ride photos? Considering the 'all photo' pass is nearly 100 dollars, it seems stingy to me to add another 50 bucks just for a few on-ride photos. I think making all of these different photo options will get confusing for travelers and make them shy away from it...I would like to have seen the system added to the already existing PhotoPass options, and just let you pay for it/download the on-ride photos at home if you like. Seems a lot less confusing.