Best seats on Soarin’

[ParkHopper1]

but it does make me wonder why they didn't have this issue with the original and they do with this one.

Much of the Soarin over CA footage was of nature which was much less noticeable, Soarin over the world has much more man made structures and the linear lines are more prevalent and the distortion is noticeable. I too am amazed it they let it fly so to speak but the issues were probably discovered way too far into the production process. It is a pretty big QC blunder IMO.

...but we tend to skip soarin as it it is very uninspiring compared to the original.

 

[njchris]

Much of the Soarin over CA footage was of nature which was much less noticeable, Soarin over the world has much more man made structures and the linear lines are more prevalent and the distortion is noticeable. I too am amazed it they let it fly so to speak but the issues were probably discovered way too far into the production process. It is a pretty big QC blunder IMO.

...but we tend to skip soarin as it it is very uninspiring compared to the original.

I think there was a period of doing things on the cheap, such as Mission Space mild version change in WDW. Hopefully All the new things coming will not fall victim to this.

 

[B3rlingirl]

Yes the old version was way better and we rode it as often as we could but for the new version it is a once and done...

Let me add a dumb question... where exactly in line do you request those B1/B2 seats?
If I remember correctly there are 2 CMs the first dividing the crowed to the left and right queue and the next CM assigns the seats? So you would have to ask both for your B1/B2 seats?

 

[TikiTikiFan]

If you’re not a fan of heights, the bottom row is the best. I prefer that row just for that reason. I’ve never had an issue with the people above/dangling feet distract me from the experience of the ride. In my personal opinion, I think even if you end up on the bottom you’ll still enjoy it.

I always ask for the bottom row when you get to the CM that assigns seats and never had an issue so I’m assuming that’s the best place to do it.

 

[MillauFr]

...but we tend to skip soarin as it it is very uninspiring compared to the original.

At least the remake still has the David Puddy intro just like the original. One of the highlights of the ride....

He is the devil...

 

[dina444444]

Yes the old version was way better and we rode it as often as we could but for the new version it is a once and done...

Let me add a dumb question... where exactly in line do you request those B1/B2 seats?
If I remember correctly there are 2 CMs the first dividing the crowed to the left and right queue and the next CM assigns the seats? So you would have to ask both for your B1/B2 seats?

You ask at the bottom of the ramp where they assign the gate number.

 

[felice]

To be honest, no matter where you sit on this ride, even if you get the dangling legs from the people above, this in itself is not too distracting from the show on the screen, from personal experience.

The ride is still enjoyable though, dangling feet or not

 

[figment_jii]

I also always ask the CM that is assigning guests which row to wait in. The first CM (the one dividing left and right) is sending guests to different screens. The second CM (the one that is sending the guests into the final waiting area where you watch the informational video), is the one to ask. They'll either ask you to step aside (if they've already filled the section/row your asking for) or wave you on to that loading area (if they haven't started filling it yet). I agree, it's worth waiting an extra cycle to view the movie from the center section. (I always ask for the top row of the center section rather than use a specific letter row combo because I can never remember the combo, I don't know if it's the same on both sides (I think it is), and I don't remember if it's the same at WDW. I figure its safer to describe what you want. )

 

[Frederic Civish]

You need section B. Sections A & C are terrible- the images are so curved they make me feel sick and I don’t get motion sickness on anything else. Row 1 = no dangling feet but you’re too high up IMO and often see the black cut out edge of the top of the screen and the ceiling
Row 2 = most center row, fully immersive screen but you can see the feet of the row above you if you look up
Row 3 = ok view, still feets, 1 & 2 are better than here but at least you’re still in section B

I agree with what everyone has said here. I had always been lucky to be in the center bay / center section, which is Bay B. Then, by chance, I ended up once clear over as far as you could get on the right side. I said never again. The distortion just makes it impossible for me to enjoy the film. For us it is the center section or nothing. All you have to do is tell them you want to be in the center section, group B / section B or whatever they call it. Tell them you will wait until the next showing if necessary. We have done this more than once and the wait is really not bad at all. So, when you get to the place where you are at the corner, and you can see the sections all down one hall, that is where you tell the cast members you want the center section. You will also know you are there because they will be asking how many people are in your party and assigning different small parties to different Bays, one party at a time. Once they send you down the hall and the cast member is putting you in the bay, tell them you would prefer to be closest to the front row, which is also closest to the wall. But I don't mind the dangling feet nearly as much as the distorted screen on the sides, so I don't think it is necessary to ask to wait for the front row, unless you just want a pristine viewing experience.

We love Soarin. The first time I took my 4 year old grand daughter on it, she looked all around, once the show was running, and said, "How are they going to get us down?" She really thought she was flying. Talk about Disney Magic.

 

[Winnowill]

There's noticeable distortion even in section B if you're at the end of the row. We always ask for section B, as well - but, unless someone asks ahead of us, one of us always has to sit at the end. We always argue about who in our party gets the closest to the middle.

 

[Chickinvic]

They replaced one of the most fantastic ride experiences they ever had "Soarin' Over California" with this steaming pile of caca. It is so distorted that it takes me right out of the experience. I did it once, and will never bother with it again - and that is a crying shame since Soarin Over California was one of my all time favourite rides. Why did they do this? It isn't like the original ride was unpopular - people loved it!

 

[Chickinvic]

There's noticeable distortion even in section B if you're at the end of the row. We always ask for section B, as well - but, unless someone asks ahead of us, one of us always has to sit at the end. We always argue about who in our party gets the closest to the middle.

That is just terrible show on Disney's part. How they passed this crap is beyond me. The original ride was miles better and immersed you in the experience (instead of seeing distortion).

 

[Frederic Civish]

They replaced one of the most fantastic ride experiences they ever had "Soarin' Over California" with this steaming pile of caca. It is so distorted that it takes me right out of the experience. I did it once, and will never bother with it again - and that is a crying shame since Soarin Over California was one of my all time favourite rides. Why did they do this? It isn't like the original ride was unpopular - people loved it!

That is just terrible show on Disney's part. How they passed this crap is beyond me. The original ride was miles better and immersed you in the experience (instead of seeing distortion).

I agree. It wasn't broke, so why did they 'fix it?' I was completely shocked the first time I sat in one of the side sections and I saw the Eiffel Tower bent at what seemed like a right angle. If you assume the people in the center section get a great experience but the people on each side are disturbed by the distortion, that means that 2/3rds of the people are disappointed or bothered and only 1/3rd are getting the experience they deserve. Who passed on that crap? They deserve to be fired. Really. They took a great ride and DESTROYED it for a very large percentage of the guests who do it.

Now, I'm sure some Disney executive is sitting up there in his office tower saying, "Well, that just can't be true, because Soarin' is still one of the most popular rides there is." To that, I would say that it is true that people line up to see it, but that is more a function of a lack of good alternatives than it is an endorsement of the current experience.

If Disney really wants to be honest about how screwed up it is, they should either give ALL the patrons a slip of paper as they come out, and have them put their approximate seat location and row on the paper, then rate the experience overall on a scale of one to 5, or they should station some survey people in the exit passages and have them constantly, randomly, grab people as they exit and ask them about their seat location and their experience. That way, they would build up some good 'comparative data about seat locations' over time.

If they actually DO think they did a good job with the new film, or that people don't notice or at least don't mind, then if they ran a good survey I really think they would be aghast.

 

[danceanddisney2010]

Center.. row one! I hate how distorted things look from the side and I hate the dangling feet! If you can't get the front row center ... the second row center would be the next best ..in our opinion. I'd rather have feet than distortion!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

Sometimes I wonder how this ride even got past Disney management. Did they only sit in section B to test it?

I remember interviewing one of the imagineers before the attraction opened (first interview I ever did), and she was so excited about it. I agree with you. The show itself is good, the distortion for those on the sides is horrible.

 

[bcdisney]

I had never bern on Soarin’ before my son and I went on it last March. We both thought it was absolutely amazing and one of the best rides we’d ever been on. I think we were seated in the middle. I didn’t notice any distortion at all. I was remarking to myself how amazing it was I couldn’t see the edge of the screen (unlike Harry Potter). It felt like I would rip my pants on the tip of the Great Pyramid. I loved the wind and the smell effects too.