Mouse Extra

For the last half of July, I was in Maine relaxing along the beautiful rocky shoreline and staying as far away as I could from phones and email.  Needless to say I was a bit out of touch with what was going on in the world of the Mouse.  That’s why I was so puzzled and unable to answer a question my father gave me while on vacation.  He was booking dining arrangements for a trip to Walt Disney World in January of 2009 and was unable to get a Fantasmic Dinner Package reservation.

“They said they didn’t know which nights the show was taking place yet”, he asked.  “Doesn’t it take place every night?”

What a strange question, I thought to myself.  Why wouldn’t they know that?  Yes, it does take place every night, doesn’t it??  Well, not anymore and as a result Disney has finally pushed my buttons to the point of anger.

As I am sure most of you have heard by now, Disney World officials have decide that starting this January Fantasmic will only be shown twice a week, during what we assume is the “down times”.  This is, we can only conclude, a cost cutting measure since the show certainly does not suffer from a lack of popularity.  If it were for any other reason, like maintenance or logistics, Disney would come out and say that and not anger scores of fans.  I am normally sympathetic to these types of measures, but there are three things about this particular decision that really bother me.

First, what is it really all about?  I understand that the country is in an economic downturn, but doesn’t Disney have to be in the same type of downturn to make such drastic measures?  According to the Orlando Sentinel last week, Disney is doing just fine and so are the parks.

The parks-and-resorts division, which includes Walt Disney World, reported a 5 percent increase in revenue, to $3.04 billion, compared with the third quarter of 2007. The division’s net operating income was $641 million, up 3 percent from a year earlier.

…Staggs said that hotel-room bookings at Disney World and Disneyland are holding steady during the current financial quarter when compared with last year — and are running ahead of last year’s pace for the following quarter, which includes the busy Christmas season.

Those encouraging hotel trends are not being driven by discount rates, he said. “Those are solid bookings, and we feel good about where we stand,” Staggs said.

It doesn’t sound like the time to circle the wagons to me.  Yes, things like oil and food cost more this year than last, but that is why they have raised ticket prices and food prices.  No, this seems to be much more about greed than economic desperation.

Second, wasn’t there anything else they could have done?  Isn’t there another less popular show they could have chopped, maybe one fewer showing of Lights, Motors, Action or Beauty and the Beast?  I know we don’t want to see any options taken away, but at least those have multiple showings and someone coming to the Studios can make plans to see it even with fewer opportunities.  Fantasmic is the park’s most popular show and now you better be lucky enough to get in to see it on these two days or you’re out of luck.  Really, how could they cut one of Disney World’s most popular attractions?  (The more I say it, the more it bugs me!)

And finally, I can’t help but wonder what is next.  If Disney can make a cut like this when company profits are up and park attendance steady or increasing, then what will they do if the economy really does start to keep people from vacationing at Walt Disney World.  Will the day soon come when if you want to see a fireworks/nighttime show you have to be at the one park that offers it on the night you are there?  Will e-ticket attractions only be open certain hours of the day?

Here is a story from late last week that I did not want to let go by without a comment or two.  It is from Scott Powers on the Orlando Sentinel’s “Tourism Central Florida” blog, and it offers up some commentary as well as an image of concept art for the upcoming rooms at the Caribbean Beach Resort that will soon be re-themed to a Pirates motif.  What do you think?

A couple of weeks ago I commented on the designs for some other rooms at the Caribbean Beach that are being re-themed to “Finding Nemo”.  And I hated it, in no uncertain terms.  But this I kind of like.  It is certainly different, and no doubt over-the-top, but in a good way.  But I would want to stay here, and I think kids would as well.

So what is the difference, you ask?  You see, there actually were pirates romping around through the Caribbean.  It is engrained within the history and lure of that part of the country that this resort is looking to emulate.  And to boot, the motion picture that these rooms are theme to also actually took place in the Caribbean.  Novel concept, don’t you think?  Nemo however, despite the poor aesthetics of the room concepts, has absolutely nothing to do with the Caribbean, zippo!

Well here we are again.  We have arrived at that annual event when Disney blogs and message boards light up with complaints over a recent rise in ticket prices.  Yes, as reported over the weekend by the Orlando Sentinel and others, you will be paying more for your ticket starting this week.

Disney announced increased ticket prices Friday afternoon that push the cost up 5.6 percent to $75 for the basic one-park, one-day ticket for adults and children 10 or older. The old price, $71, is still in effect today. The price of a basic ticket for children ages 3 to 9 will rise Sunday to $63, up 5 percent from $60.

Disney also raised the price of its “Magic Your Way” multiday-ticket packages, by 3 percent to 8 percent. The top deal, a 10-day adult Magic Your Way ticket, now costs $237, or $23.70 a day, up 5.3 percent. The Park Hopper add-on, which allows ticket holders to move among any of Disney’s parks, will cost $50 for up to 10 days, a $5 increase. The Water Park Fun & More add-on option remains $50.

We all know the economy is suffering right now.  Many things, not just fuel, cost more than they did last year and Disney is going to pass that cost along to its customers.  Until people stop going to Walt Disney World, the prices will keep going up.  This now appears to be as inevitable as death and taxes

We have also seen many other cost-cutting measures recently, most notably the fact that Fantasmic will only be shown twice per week starting in January.  This is where things get upsetting.  I don’t mind paying a bit more, but it does bug me when I get less in return.  And I will be willing to bet you that when the economy turns around, Fantasmic won’t go back to a daily schedule.  Remember when we heard that cuts in operating hours were a response to post-9/11 drop in attendance?  I am still waiting for those hours to increase back to what they were…

I would also like to thank all of you for your patience these last couple of weeks with the lack of postings on Mouse Extra.  We all took some much needed “r and r”.  Keep checking back this week as we get caught up.

The Disney Gossip blog has come to an interesting conclusion regarding the apparent spotting of some Imagineering vehicles parked around the Wonders of Life pavilion.  This might be wishful thinking, but WDI may not be looking into new ideas for the Food and Wine festival center.

Well it turns out that the “Body Wars” motion-simulator vehicles are near clones of the ones used for Star Tours. Since Body Wars is no longer open to guests, it makes sense for WDI to be testing their Star Tours 2.0 ideas there.

Yes, this is something of a leap to draw this conclusion out of some cars parked in Epcot, but this is not the only evidence we have.  For months and months we have be getting new rumors regarding the next incarnation of the Star Tours ride.  From what I understand, this is happening.  We are just getting the normal tight lipped treatment we have come to expect from both Disney and George Lucas.

This rumor has certainly had many of us Star Wars fanatics excited, but also rather nervous.  Star Tours is by no means the perfect attractions.  The droid is pretty annoying, but all of us who loved the original movies can’t help but get excited by flying through the trench on the Death Star.  The problem is Lucas has many ways to go here with a new version that can be disappointing.  Basically, anything involving the recent trilogy of films would have to be something really special to excite me.

For those of you that are unaware, Disney has announced the closing of one of the original attractions of Disney’s Animal Kingdom. According to the Orlando Sentinel,  , the last show will be September 27th. This is not a terribly compelling show for sure. It was one of those attractions that after seeing it once, you never went back. For those who have never seen it, it was a small theater where Pocohontas appeared with Grandmother Willow and several live animals. The whole thing was environmentally educational and small children were able to sit up front for a better view.

Disney has not announced a replacement. The demise of this attraction has been rumored for some time. One rumor placed an animal actors show at this location. Another rumor placed a show around Merlin and a dragon here. As many of you are aware, Camp Minnie Mickey was initially a temporary land with the Beastly Kingdomme eventually occupying this spot. This closure almost assuredly is not a sign of the coming of the Beastly Kingdomme. In all likelihood, the area will remain a low-key stage show.

According to this morning’s Mouse Planet park update for Walt Disney World, it appears Disney may be making a change to their dining reservations system.  Apparently they are going back to a 90 day window for advanced booking, from the 180 day window that currently exists.  There will be three exceptions, Chef Mickey’s, Cinderella’s Royal Table, and Victoria and Alberts.

It’s about time.  This is great news and a great decision should it come to pass.  I always thought that having to book restaurants half a year before you go on vacation was absolutely absurd.  For one thing, I don’t always plan my trips that far out and I know others don’t either.  If you booked your trip any less than six months away you don’t get a fair shake at decent ressies.  That seemed like an awful stiff price to pay for not knowing if you had the vacation time or funds to go on a trip that far in advance.

My extended family and I are scheduled to go to Walt Disney World in January, and it is amazing to me that we are trying to figure out where we are going to eat now.  Let’s hope this change is made and in the future we can take our time a bit more.