News Round Up 2017

[lockedoutlogic]

So here's a Canadian's $0.02 on Disney Springs ... we were never really fans when it was Downtown Disney and we like Disney Springs only marginally better. It always seems to be so darn hot and humid ... it's almost as bad as AK! The high end shops aren't our thing (though we do enjoy shopping). Uniqlo and the Marketplace are nice additions. Have to agree with @lockedoutlogic that the Christmas Store is a sad shadow of what it once was (and has been for years). The boys are quickly outgrowing Once Upon a Toy and the Lego Store. Restaurant options are better, but other than a few new ones we are interested in trying, there's not much of a compelling draw for us to visit every trip. A replacement of some sort for La Nouba would be appealing.

Completely agree about the uncomfortable nature of the design. Concrete and white facades/brick in the Florida sun. It's a bad design...I couldn't believe they did that consciously when I first walked in there.

 

[amberpi]

They simply didn't like the profit to expense ratio. There are all kinds of excuses..."security" being the big one.

But I can trust my own ears...and for several years all the operational complaints were boiled down simply to profits. They aren't that subtle on the ledger sheets.

And I've been trying to carbon date you (as in figure out your age...no cheeky misdirection joke)...and I was thinking around 27...but if you have cut your teeth in PI I'll have to revise that upward...interesting...

You're off by a decade, not sure if it's because I look young, or seem immature.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

You're off by a decade, not sure if it's because I look young, or seem immature.

I lied...I was thinking 36 from the start...you must have typed something on another thread that tipped me off.

That's probably why I think your jokes are funny...they come out of the same general depth of the primordial ooze as mine.
...now back to regular programming.

 

[circus4u]

You're off by a decade, not sure if it's because I look young, or seem immature.

I lied...I was thinking 36 from the start...you must have typed something on another thread that tipped me off.

That's probably why I think your jokes are funny...they come out of the same general depth of the primordial ooze as mine.
...now back to regular programming.

Warped sense of humor comes from basking in the humid, Florida sun, surrounded by millions of mosquitoes! Anyone that puts up with that misery for any length of time is most definitely warped. Been there, done that. Lived there from 1956 to 1996, then decided to come to the "dry heat" of AZ where you don't steam, just bake and shrivel up like a prune.

 

[bluecastle]

I am glad someone mentioned The Adventurer's Club- one of my biggest WDW regrets was never getting there. By the time my DD was old enough to appreciate it, it was gone. But I read plenty of Trip Reports about it and also about the Comedy Warehouse.
We have gone to the Disney Village Marketplace/Downtown Disney/ DSprings to the character breakfast on the Empress Lilly, World of Disney, the old Christmas Chalet/ Days of Christmas that I loved, La Nouba, the movie theater in the rain, and more recently, Raglan Road. After looking at the photos of what it looks like now, even my DD who loves to shop, said she'd rather be spending time at Food and Wine, the parks, and our hotel, the Boardwalk. We live in an area that has too many malls, including high end ones, and tons of restaurants. It's too bad that now, at a time when we could really enjoy the AC or CW, they are so far in the past that not many people here even know that they were ever there.
I'm glad that they have better dining options than is typical for Disney, but I guess we'd rather spend our money on other things.

 

[pepperandchips]

I remember PI well, and it was...tacky, except for the Adventurer's Club. That's not going to work. Some late night, cool, relaxing, dare I say even upmarket lounges I think would succeed. I know my WDW desires are decently singular, so whatever. There's the Bluezoo lounge and Atlantic Dance Hall (shudder) if I'm really hard up. I just wonder how many other guests are going up to a bottle of wine in their room at the end of the night that they'd enjoy more out and about, and would most certainly pay more for. #shrug

Screaming into the abyss, I know.

Is BlueZoo open "late"? We, childless early 30s adult couple, often get up for rope drop but do enjoy an "upmarket" or themed lounge on nights prior to our sleep-in mornings. We've closed down Trader Sam's more than once and were among just a handful of guests left at closing. The same is true at The Wave, though it's seasonally better attended due to conventioners.

Even at Disney Springs, we spend most of our time either in the Homecoming shine bar or Morimoto forbidden lounge, so we are definitely the market for this... yet, the lounges (aside from Trader Sam's) are never really all that busy and tend to empty out considerably by 11:00 or so. Admittedly some bars are flourishing - we love meeting parents during their date nights at Tambu Lounge (which is always mobbed while Ohana is serving), but it makes me wonder what the "childless adult" really brings to the Disney parks, profit wise.

And, as suggested, we typically pack either a bottle of bourbon or some wine that we drink on our resort patio. I'd think that CMs (a large resident population of young people who could easily fill cool lounges) are totally priced out of the current offerings save for very special occasions ($17 drinks at paddlefish on Disney's wage is not feasible). But if Disney offered a REALLY cool themed lounge/nightclub I could see them luring the CMs.

I'll join your abyss-screaming, but at the end of the day, we're just two voices. From my totally anecdotal evidence I just don't see the market to support more nightlife, save for maybe a pop up lounge during food and wine festival.

I try not to be a pixie duster, but I'm saving judgment on the Edison until I see it. The speakeasy/rum tunnels definitely sound cool. If they can put in some talented lounge singers I can see spending many evenings in a themed environment like that.

 

[LSLS]

NBA should have some entertainment but that won't appeal to all of course. House of Blues has music options from time to time. We also don't know what is happening to the Cirque space after it closes. There is then Splitsville for bowling.

I do like DS (especially the dining), though I do wish there were some more fun bars to go to like PI had. As LOL said, it has become very much like a super nice mall (with some great dining options). That said, House of Blues is such a sore spot for me. As a hard rock guy, when I lived in Tampa, I would go to dozens of shows at HOB, to the point I would go there to see a show even if the show was coming to Tampa. Sound was great there and the setup for shows was great. But some time right before I moved I believe (maybe after), Disney decided no more hard rock (with few exceptions), which means I stopped getting the shows I wanted to see for the most part (I do listen to other stuff, but it's few and far between that end up at HOB). I look at their schedule every time I'm down there just for fun, and it seems like just in general there are a lot less shows than there used to be as well. Anyways, tangent over, like I said, HOB is a sore spot for me when it comes to it's live venue.

 

[beer dave]

I still like the Neverland tunnels concept better.

They probably decided it was too risky to combine peter pan and specialty drinks....

 

[beer dave]

"This likely means that the restaurant is in basement of The Edison, replacing the long rumored “Neverland Tunnels” and “Walt’s Lounge” concepts originally meant for this space."

Well that's disappointing. Especially since I really don't like Italian food.

but do you like rum?.......that's the important question.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Warped sense of humor comes from basking in the humid, Florida sun, surrounded by millions of mosquitoes! Anyone that puts up with that misery for any length of time is most definitely warped. Been there, done that. Lived there from 1956 to 1996, then decided to come to the "dry heat" of AZ where you don't steam, just bake and shrivel up like a prune.

And I would have guessed you "younger"...which means you must be young at heart.

That qualifies you for a child's rate on an AP...

...which means you'll pay the same price as the regular rate

 

[Moliphino]

but do you like rum?.......that's the important question.

I do love rum, so at least there's that. Though there's already Trader Sam's for a rum fix.

And who says the Adventurer's Club wasn't for kids? I started going when I was 6 (greeted with shouts of "The pygmies are here!").

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I do love rum, so at least there's that. Though there's already Trader Sam's for a rum fix.

And who says the Adventurer's Club wasn't for kids? I started going when I was 6 (greeted with shouts of "The pygmies are here!").

For Most of the last 15 years of PI...the "pygmies" were never allowed inside.

 

[Disneymom1126]

Though I think the Disney Springs topic is starting to droll on...my general thought about is that it's just not for everyone. In high school we took a few trips to Disney (sang in the Candlelight Processional one year and our Senior Trip) and going to Pleasure Island was a highlight at that age - somehow it felt like we were doing something cool (out late, no parents, etc.). I could see the draw Pleasure Island back then as a night-time destination. With it being *cough* around 20 years ago at this point, I don't remember the details of what was actually there...

Now, in our trips with DD we've only spent half a day at Disney Springs. We had lunch and wandered through some shops. Aside from the lego store, which was a hit with DD because she is Lego-obsessed and enjoying the boat ride from POFQ and back, there wasn't much appeal for us. I could see it being more appealing if I was on an all adult trip. Even then, it would be because of the dining more than the shopping as there are some interesting places to eat/drink/be merry...especially in the evening/after parks have closed. I also wonder what locals think of the area - is it a spot for them to go? I lived in Daytona for a while in my 20's and had some friends in the Orlando area. We would occasionally go over to City Walk at Universal, but didn't ever think about going to Downtown Disney/Disney Springs at the time. It's like everything Disney to me - people either love it or could do without it. Same conversation as applies to the "there's nothing to do for a full day at AK or Epcot will be boring to kids, etc. etc. etc."

 

[wareagle57]

I lied...I was thinking 36 from the start...you must have typed something on another thread that tipped me off.

That's probably why I think your jokes are funny...they come out of the same general depth of the primordial ooze as mine.
...now back to regular programming.

I can't tell if this is turning into the dating game or you're just guessing ages. I'll test it by asking how old you think I am.

 

[mikepizzo]

I can't tell if this is turning into the dating game or you're just guessing ages. I'll test it by asking how old you think I am.

I was going to say that their interactions have been, for lack of a better word, adorable.

 

[Killer Fish]

Man did I love Pleasure Island. I was at UCF from 2000-2004 and definitely had some fun nights there when I could get people to agree to go "all the way" to Disney.

I have not been to Disney Springs/Downtown Disney in years.....probably will change that over Labor Day weekend when I am staying in the area. Any recommendations for a good restaurant with a 1 year old? Obviously nothing to fancy since apparently he has just learned that screaming is fun. I think the last time I was there we did T Rex cafe a few years ago.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I can't tell if this is turning into the dating game or you're just guessing ages. I'll test it by asking how old you think I am.

The latter...

...I'll go 54

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I was going to say that their interactions have been, for lack of a better word, adorable.

Purely for research purposes

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Man did I love Pleasure Island. I was at UCF from 2000-2004 and definitely had some fun nights there when I could get people to agree to go "all the way" to Disney.

I have not been to Disney Springs/Downtown Disney in years.....probably will change that over Labor Day weekend when I am staying in the area. Any recommendations for a good restaurant with a 1 year old? Obviously nothing to fancy since apparently he has just learned that screaming is fun. I think the last time I was there we did T Rex cafe a few years ago.

If they had put UCF closer...that wouldn't have been a problem...bad planning on their part

 

[skier_pete]

Right now I don't go to the Springs for the shopping. I go for the dining. I like two of the 100 stores. You also have to look at the demographics. Disney isn't just catering to the American they cater to people from all over the world. You should already know that. Also not everyone who lives in the US has these stores in a close proximity. So with that it may not be appealing to you but it is to others. Of all the new stores so far only one of them has closed so something must be going right.

See - I feel like there may be some good restaurants at DS - but it not worth the hassle to travel there versus at the resorts/parks where I'm already at. Everytime I go to DS it's minimum hour travel with the traffic, versus 30 minutes to a park where I can eat AND do other things. If DS doesn't try to attract me with something unique (the stores aren't cutting it), then I'm not even bothering to go. Blaze pizza sounds interesting, but again not 2 hours round trip travel interesting. Edison has the potential to be something unique. If they dumb it down to just another dining location - then I just won't care.