Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "Here's a photo update about what's currently going on at DLP." If only DL in Anaheim would ever be that empty. I'm sad to see the Alice photo-op chair has been removed. I have an old pic of myself sitting in it.
Originally Posted By u k fan Those old 1992 photos are really interesting. I still struggle to picture how Discoveryland looked pre-Space Mountain even though I visited in '92. The park looks very empty. What a great time to visit!!!
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>The park looks very empty. What a great time to visit!!!<<< Honestly I'm not sure if I want to visit the park during these empty days. Firstly many rides are closed for refurbs and secondly there should be people in the park. I also don't like queueing for hours, but such an empty park doesn't look good either. >>>Those old 1992 photos are really interesting. I still struggle to picture how Discoveryland looked pre-Space Mountain even though I visited in '92.<<< According to Tim Delaney, they had built a berm to cover the empty land for SM. So people couldn't see the expansion pad and that's why Discoveryland didn't feel incomplete.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>If only DL in Anaheim would ever be that empty. I'm sad to see the Alice photo-op chair has been removed. I have an old pic of myself sitting in it.<<< What are the best times to visit DL Anaheim?
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>What are the best times to visit DL Anaheim?<< A rainy Tuesday in February. Other than that, there are going to be some crowds In all fairness though, the weekend crowds are typically manageable for out-of-towners; it's just the APers who can't be bothered with a 30 minute wait for Pirates. I was there this Saturday (a Federal holiday weekend), and I still visit often enough that I didn't feel like I had to do everything, but infrequently enough that I didn't mind a slightly longer wait than normal. I think the longest wait we saw was under 60 minutes, with most of the E-tickets somewhere around 30-45 minutes
Originally Posted By u k fan I quite like the park quiet. I know there's a trade-off with the weather and attractions being down, but it's much more relaxing!!!
Originally Posted By dagobert I have always been to DLP during busy seasons. The worst was New Year's Eve 2006. So I guess we have to try the lower seasons.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "What are the best times to visit DL Anaheim?" Right now until spring break and the midweek during the second half of September.
Originally Posted By dagobert Here's the second part of the Disney & More DLP update. <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://disneyandmore.blogspot.com/2014/01/disneyland-paris-update-part-two.html">http://disneyandmore.blogspot....two.html</a>
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt For a California native used to bright sunny Orange County those gloomy skies and chilly temperatures in Paris can be brutal for visiting the parks. The last time I was there was in the month of April and it was basically just like those images.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>For a California native used to bright sunny Orange County those gloomy skies and chilly temperatures in Paris can be brutal for visiting the parks. The last time I was there was in the month of April and it was basically just like those images. <<< We have been to DLP recently and we were lucky with the weather. We had sun every day, although the skies turned into grey too. In continental Europe we are used to that kind of weather during Winter.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt Yep, and tourists visiting Europe, unlike most of those visiting Southern California, aren't going for the weather
Originally Posted By tonyanton those early pix are interesting...the opening of the Paris park/resort really reflected the older, classic way of Disney's parks/resorts business. You had unique merchandise in shops, lots of smaller area entertainment, smaller attractions (which DLP for whatever reason has held on to better than WDW or DL), etc. It was really the '94 to '96 time frame where everything began to shift (generic merch, closed locations, reductions in entertainment, less maintenance, etc), unfortunately not for the better IMO.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>> You had unique merchandise in shops, lots of smaller area entertainment, smaller attractions (which DLP for whatever reason has held on to better than WDW or DL), etc. <<< I guess DLP held on to the smaller attraction, because there was no money to build something new. So they kept nearly everything that can be counted as an attraction to offer as much as possible to the guests. As for the merchandise, DLP started to try to sell unique merchandise again. For example Lilly's Boutique on MS sells only kitchen supply and shops near attractions are selling more ride inspired merchandise again. We really liked the new Phantom Manor merchandise. I was surprised to see that Marvel wasn't that big anymore in the MS Emporium. In 2010 the shop was full with that crap, now it shifted to the Studios, where the Marvel stuff belongs. I'm glad to see that DLP is trying harder and is listening to the fans. Now it's possible to buy attraction posters and other art.
Originally Posted By tonyanton That's good to hear...some of the DLP specific attraction posters were/are just beautifully done.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt Jumping back to weather for a moment... I just looked at the most recent MiceAge DL update and the resort had gloomy overcast skies this week. <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://micechat.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/IMG_5746.jpg">http://micechat.com/wp-content...5746.jpg</a>
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance I hope next time we go it's like that. I would love to be out of the sun while in the parks. I end up looking like a lobster by the time we go home WITH sunscreen. And, I don't know why the sight of so many people on Main Street always shocks me.
Originally Posted By dagobert DLP's First Quarter Results aren't good. <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://corporate.disneylandparis.com/CORP/EN/Neutral/Images/uk-2014-02-04-cp-resultats-financiers-Q1.pdf">http://corporate.disneylandpar...s-Q1.pdf</a> >>>> EURO DISNEY S.C.A. Fiscal Year 2014 First Quarter Announcement • Resort revenues decreased 5% eflecting lower theme parks attendance and hotel occupancy linked to the continued economic softness in Europe • Average guest spending increased 4% in theme parks and 6% in hotels reflecting the Group’s strategic focus on improving the guest experience • Opening of the new Ratatouille-themed attraction in early Summer 2014 <<<<
Originally Posted By u k fan Interesting results. Less people are visiting, but those that go are spending more. Does this mean Disney are pricing the average family out?!!!
Originally Posted By dagobert According to the report, the increase is because of higher room rates. So I guess you can say that Disney is pricing out the average family.
