New Magic Kingdom Welcome Show & Main Street Opening UPDATE: Page 15 - Post #281

[Disney Khi]

I'm so sad about this. My whole family loves the welcome show with the train. DD and I have the song on CD and listen to it often. I went to Disneyland once and was so disappointed in the lack of a show. It seemed anti-climactic to just walk onto Main St. and into the park. And we very rarely watch the stage shows. I never feel like I can see them very well.

 

[andyman8]

In terms of the concerns for the PPO ADR folks, I'd add that, while they'll definitely be more people in your early morning Main Street pics now, it's still going to seem relatively empty compared to how it is at midday. Main Street is a fairly large and long area, and generally speaking, only about 6000-700 or so people show up each day for rope drop (compared to the more than 40,000 or so that visit the park on a day with very low crowds), so if they disperse around Main Street, it will seem still pretty empty. Plus, my guess is many of them will linger closer to the end of the street near the castle, meaning that most of Main Street will be pretty empty. Now, Disney is just extending the benefit of taking those empty Main Street pictures to anyone who will show up early. Maybe that will even free up some early morning ADRs for other guests who really want to eat at those restaurants. I still understand the frustration, but I think this change may be good for most people.

 

[isabellea]

I never saw a welcome show. We always had a PPO ADR at CP (now a tradition) or arrived 5-10 minutes too late. The first year I booked a PPO ADR was to have the 'empty' pic in front of the castle and I got it. The last 3 years was more to avoid the long boring wait outside of MK and be able to get to Space Mountain quickly. Last year we didn't take a single photo early morning and we had Memory Maker! Our next trip is in March and I was already debating whether to keep our ADR to CP for a budget reason (need to choose between the CP ADR or the Pirate Pals cruise) and this change makes me lean toward canceling it even more simply to be able to experience main street a bit more while waiting for the rope drop.

Anyone else noticed the addition of a 7:30am slot for BOG? I saw it for March 9th 2017...

 

[beck00]

I will definitely miss the opening train station show. I'm the family planner and we have 4 first-timers on our Mardi Gras 2017 trip. I kinda dislike that they won't see it, especially for my 3 year old nephew who loves trains. We have a 8:05 BOG ADR for our group of 12. Most of us have been before, seen the almost empty streets, snapped the pic of it just because we could and not due to strategy. I won't be canceling our ADR, but will stay tuned for reports once this starts so I can figure out what time we need to arrive for the 8:05 reservation.

 

[BrianL]

I'm so sad about this. My whole family loves the welcome show with the train. DD and I have the song on CD and listen to it often. I went to Disneyland once and was so disappointed in the lack of a show. It seemed anti-climactic to just walk onto Main St. and into the park. And we very rarely watch the stage shows. I never feel like I can see them very well.

That was one of my biggest disappointments the first time I want to DL, since it was one of my favorite parts of WDW (and this was when eah park had a small opening show). DL did nothing, and their rope drop was from the hub. It was just a little less grand. That's not to say that DL doesn't do somethings better than WDW, but the opening wasn't one of them.

 

[CyForDisney]

This hurts big time. I made Crystal Palace 8am reservations with the intent of getting some engagement photos with my new Fiance. Sigh..

 

[Farro]

I like the idea of waiting on Main Street to start the day! Browsing, eating - will definitely solve our problem of rushing to rope drop and shoving food in our faces at the resort.

I've seen the opening show (the full one) before. I feel no nostalgic ties to it.
For a whole new group of people, the new show will be their first opening show and this will be part of their nostalgia.

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

They are doing this because only a certain amount of guests fit in the area for the show, they hold people at ttc every day because of this, so those people who are at the ttc isn't fun for them..it's not a cash grab.

 

[WEDWDW]

How many years has Magic Kingdom Welcome been running?

I'm so glad I'll be there for the final MKW on January 8!

MKW is kind of like The Kiss Goodnight-it takes a real hardcore WDW GEEK to "appreciate" it!lol

 

[yulilin3]

How many years has Magic Kingdom Welcome been running?

I'm so glad I'll be there for the final MKW on January 8!

MKW is kind of like The Kiss Goodnight-it takes a real hardcore WDW GEEK to "appreciate" it!lol

from the HUB it debuted 12/01/04 like others have said I remember when there was no welcome show, you just walked up and waited by whatever land you wanted to go first

 

[DopeyDame]

Count me among the PPO breakfast crowd that is bummer. Of course I wasn't "guaranteed" a relatively empty Main Street, but that was 100% the reason we made the reservation. I'm willing to pay $25pp for breakfast at BoG if it also gets us 15 minutes to mosey up Main Street, take some pictures, and enjoy a calm start to the day. But if all we're actually getting is breakfast, I'll save my $100 from BoG breakfast and just grab a coffee and some pastries at Main Street bakery instead.
We were going to also eat breakfast at BoG, so I'm not sure why some posters think just because you want Main Street time doesn't mean you aren't also going to eat breakfast. People like all sorts of different aspects of the WDW experience - just because something is important to someone it doesn't mean it has to be important to everyone, and it's completely legitimate to be disappointed if something you had been looking forward to is no longer a possibility.

All that said, in general, this seems like a good change, as now lots more people get some ambiance time on Main Street before starting the day without scrambling for the limited PPO reservations. I do agree with a PP though, that it's SO frustrating that Disney has set up a system where the guests have to be reserving things 180/60 days in advance to get some of the most coveted attractions or reservations, and they go and change plans with very limited notice. We're now within 30 days of our MK day with the BoG PPO, and I had planned FP+s assuming we'd be in fantasyland PPO. Now I'm going to have to rearrange things to accommodate the changes, which is very frustrating.

 

[disneymommy13]

I am really sad to see the train show go, my family has only seen parts of it not the whole thing. We usually did a 8:30 am PPO ADR at Crystal palace. I just wonder if we will need to increase travel time down Main Street to get thru the ticket turnstiles to our reservations or will they still have separate checkin on the sides for people with ADR? I'm very interested to see how this works and if people like it.

 

[Mousetopia]

[QUOTE="mikedoyleblogger, post: 56897073, I think it's easy to underestimate the sense of freedom you get when you're not forced to crowd at the tapstyles or the archways and finally have things you can actually do while you wait.[/QUOTE]


.....I am starting to warm up to this idea a little!!! I dont really need the mainstreet pic anymore. I hate the cattle herd feeling of the big crowd
out front. It may be an improvement!

***I am curious or early entry resort benefit days will work? Will They make it earlier so it is strill a benefit? Be interesting to see how it plays out

 

[Mousetopia]

Awesome-so the Main Street Vehicles will still start when Guests are first allowed in the Park as always-it will just be now at 8:00 or 8:30(assuming they will pick one of those times)?

I love riding the Omni as soon as I enter MK down to the Castle-so much FUN!

Thanks!

I have never ridden these. Is there a charge? Where do you get them?

 

[ArielSRL]

Anyone else noticed the addition of a 7:30am slot for BOG? I saw it for March 9th 2017...

I did notice that when you search for available tables for BOG, you can select 7:30 as a search time but no tables available before 8 and I checked like 10 future dates. The weird thing is, I also checked Crystal Palace and Hollywood & Vine to see if there was a 7:30 search time and there was not. Their searches start at 8:00. Not sure if the 7:30 search time for BOG is new or not though as I never looked before for that early.

 

[Mousetopia]

Good! You pay $25 for a breakfast to eat. Shocking I know. Let those who are booking and not eating cancel. That way people who do want to eat will. I'm sorry, but PPO breakfasts are not for anything other than a meal. Or they shouldn't be.

I totally agree. However, the only way they have been able to get the outrageous price for breakfast here (in my opinion) at the level of bookings they currently enjoy, is the hoped for extra perks. I love BOG. I will NOT pay that much for the menu they offer for breakfast.

 

[AZMermaid]

***I am curious or early entry resort benefit days will work? Will They make it earlier so it is strill a benefit? Be interesting to see how it plays out

In Disneyland.... early entry guests are let in an hour early... everyone else 30 minutes early. If you come between the, say, 8:30-9:00 for EE there is a CM standing at the side of the rope checking room keys/tickets (one DL EE comes with a 3 day+ hopper ticket). Admittedly... it is hard to get to that CM once Main St fills, so it doesn't make a ton of sense to get there for EE after 8:40ish. At CA Adventure where they hold people in their hub area vs the end of Main St- same thing but at 8:30, ropes go up blocking access out of the hub. As an EE guest, you can cross through the hub and you just need to show your room key to get through. The crowd is more dispersed so this is pretty easy to do and you feel like a rock star with backstage passes- haha.

 

[BrianL]

I have never ridden these. Is there a charge? Where do you get them?

These are the Main Street Vehicles, an often overlooked attraction at MK. There is no charge, but seating is limited. There are a few different styles, including a horse-drawn trolley, fire engine, old-timey car, and the omnibus, which is a double-decker. They pick up at the front of Main Street (near the flag pole) and go to the Castle.

 

[Mousetopia]

I did notice that when you search for available tables for BOG, you can select 7:30 as a search time but no tables available before 8 and I checked like 10 future dates. The weird thing is, I also checked Crystal Palace and Hollywood & Vine to see if there was a 7:30 search time and there was not. Their searches start at 8:00. Not sure if the 7:30 search time for BOG is new or not though as I never looked before for that early.

I have been keeping an eye on BOG as well...and that 7:30 popping in is new in the last week or two. I have wondered if they might start earlier breakfasts along with this early entrance change..that would be very interesting!

 

[mikedoyleblogger]

That was one of my biggest disappointments the first time I want to DL, since it was one of my favorite parts of WDW (and this was when eah park had a small opening show). DL did nothing, and their rope drop was from the hub. It was just a little less grand. That's not to say that DL doesn't do somethings better than WDW, but the opening wasn't one of them.

See, I was the opposite. My first adult trip to MK as a DL vet, I remember being really irked to have to "waste" time standing by the floral Mickey in the middle of nowhere (land-wise) instead of being able to relax and get coffee on Main Street. Then again, DL just "reads" differently to the locals who make up the majority of guests. There's more of a wink-and-nod, in-joke kind of feeling to the magic between the CMs and the visitors since they all grew up with it, a short-hand magic, if you will. I'd bet money a formal, you're-about-to-have-the-time-of-your-life welcome show wouldn't go over very well there for this reason.