Originally Posted By fkurucz >>I do agree that I would pass on Houston<< But to be fair you can buy a McMansion (5 bedrooms, 3000 sq ft, 3 car garage) for about 200K in Houston.
Originally Posted By mrichmondj McMansions are yesterday's news. Seems that people forgot they would have to pay the utilities on all those square feet, and now the market is shifting to smaller homes where people can actually afford to pay for the electric and gas.
Originally Posted By gurgitoy2 I'm not sure that Disneyland can't be a full resort. The WDW comparison always comes up; even within the company. The thing is that DL and WDW can never be the same. Disneyland should be a resort, but not on WDW's terms. It's impossible. Tokyo Disney Resort has the same problem that Disneyland does, in that it's in an urban area, so DL should go that route. I've heard talks lately of tearing down the Disneyland and possibly Paradise Pier Hotels and building entirely new ones. I'm all for that. What that could do is provide a bit more of the "resort" some feel is lacking. If they went with, say, a Victorian themed Disneyland Hotel, then they could have some space dedicated to lush gardens, outdoor activities and such. A third gate would be a great addition, although it would require that DCA become a full day park first (at least in my opinion). I agree with those that mentioned the need for growth in order to compete. Even if DCA put in a lagoon show and had another nightime parade, at least that could keep gates open until much later, which could alleviate a lot of Disneyland's crowding headaches. It would also help if Disneyland built those arcades on Main Street to help guest flow. I guess, ultimately, I think a third gate, and better hotels would be very good for Disneyland, and it will definately be a full resort...just a completely different kind than WDW.
Originally Posted By fkurucz >>McMansions are yesterday's news.<< I know. Square footage isn't everything anymore. Now its upgrades like granite counter tops, cherry wood cabinets, upgraded trim, 9 foot ceilings, hardwood floors (not oak), etc.
Originally Posted By fkurucz >>I'm not sure that Disneyland can't be a full resort.<< I think that the main challenge is nearness to the rest of Anaheim. Think of La Costa. Its not huge like WDW, but its still somewhat isolated from the rest of Carlsbad. To be fair La Costa doesn't welcome 50,000 plus guests every day. I guess at the end of the day DLR needs space, which is unfortunately, prohibitively expensive. Even a fraction of WDW's (say 2-3 square miles) space would easily cost over a billion.
Originally Posted By nemopoppins Disneyland IS already a resort. There is definitely enough to spend at least a week there and not even go off property. Disneyland, itself, as wonderful as it was, is MUCH better now that it's part of the resort. A third park will only enhance the resort they already have. WDW has a lot of space but that doesn't mean that any resort has to have a lot of space.
Originally Posted By gurgitoy2 Well, it's all about what Disneyland can DO with the space it has. It's the totally opposite problem from WDW. They have tons of space to expand over there, and in fact, have sold off small bits here and there because there is just so much. they don't have to worry about anything intruding on the space. Disneyland, on the other hand, has to find VERY creative ways to use the little space they have. I hope that by adding a third park and redoing the hotels, they can maximise the small space and make it feel much grander than it actually is. To a very large degree, they've already done that with the Downtown Disney expansion and the general city upgrades. It's certainly a far cry from a parking lot (although I suppose some people still miss the expanse of asphalt...)
Originally Posted By pleddy36 I have to disagree with Disney not having the space to expand the Disneyland Resort. Before I became disabled I worked for a company very close to DL, and my supervisor's Mom used to work for Disney. In fact she was one of the people that flew over FL looking for spots for WDW, and she also has a window on Main Street at DL. But anyway, I was told during one of our many conversations about DL that they owned most of the property around Harbor Blvd. Many of the old crappy hotels are actually on Disney property.
Originally Posted By Socrates A totally off-the-wall idea I just thought of: Put a third park on the current site of the DL & PP hotels and build new hotels somewhere else? Socrates "The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."
Originally Posted By bean Disney does own some land around the resort that is being leased to others. Problem is that much of it is scattered.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Well, they have a huge chunk of land to the west of the parks (where the hotels and parking lots are now), which, as Socrates said, could be used for a new park. Then, they could use the smaller plots of land near by to build hotels, since each one could be seperated from the others, which would allow for a lot more development. I think this could be a viable solution to DL's problem!
Originally Posted By Dabob2 <The real Pacific Ocean is twenty minutes away, 2 sports areanas are 10 minutes away, and the museums and "class" of LA are under an hour away. Anaheim, California is a far more interesting space than 20 minutes out of Orlando and Kissimee, Florida.> This is exactly why, despite being closer to WDW than DLR (and you can ALWAYS get cheap airfare to Fla. from here), we choose DLR more often. After getting my Disney fix, SoCal is just sooooo much more interesting than central Fla.
Originally Posted By avromark <<After getting my Disney fix, SoCal is just sooooo much more interesting than central Fla>> Just put your seat all the way back and bob your head Don't have to worry about the Lexus going 25 on the highway with it's left turn signal continually blinking for the last hour
Originally Posted By BrigmanMT 2 To my list of Anaheim superior elements I do not know how I could have missed the weather. Humidity is next to nothing and the coastal temperature keeps the area steady between 60 and 80 degrees. It doesn't get any better than that. If Disneyland had a third park, a filled out DCA, a transportation hub, a golf course connection and a cirque, I can see no reason for preferring to venture to Florida over CA. But this isn't the problem Disney is going to have. The goal should not be to steal Florida guests, but to get a new breed of tourists to visit often and spend a lot. These should be the people who only visit once or twice a decade at the moment, or people who have never visited the parks at all.
Originally Posted By gurgitoy2 Also, Disneyland should really focus on getting that West of the Rockies crowd. Several people have said that even though they live in that area, they only get the WDW ads. Disneyland Resort needs to be more agressive on that side of the country.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 <<After getting my Disney fix, SoCal is just sooooo much more interesting than central Fla>> <Just put your seat all the way back and bob your head Don't have to worry about the Lexus going 25 on the highway with it's left turn signal continually blinking for the last hour > Not even sure what this means, but... BrigmanMT is quite right about the weather. So much more comfortable most of the year, and fewer rainouts too.
Originally Posted By Westsider >>"But to be fair you can buy a McMansion (5 bedrooms, 3000 sq ft, 3 car garage) for about 200K in Houston."<< Yeah, but you are stuck living in Houston. Sorry, but I've seen Houston, both downtown and the upper-middle class suburbs around Baytown, and it's a rather depressing environment in which to live. Houston is a generally charmless, featureless, bland, pointless city to live in. But God bless 'em, they've got cheap land and in lieu of personality or taste anyone with a decent job lives in a supersized McMansion to take their mind off of the fact that they have to live in Houston. I was lucky enough to grow up in a genuine Joseph Eichler home over in Orange, which is the antithesis of a McMansion. I don't live in Orange anymore, but I hope my folks hang on to that awesome house long enough so I can get my hands on it one day.
Originally Posted By nemopoppins >>>I was lucky enough to grow up in a genuine Joseph Eichler home over in Orange,<<< Wow, Westsider, I envy you! How much is it worth now? And how many are in the neighborhood?
Originally Posted By fkurucz >>Houston is a generally charmless, featureless, bland, pointless city to live in.<< True (remember, I did say I would pass on Houston), but the same could be said of most of Orange County (Santa Ana, Anaheim, etc.). >>I don't live in Orange anymore, but I hope my folks hang on to that awesome house long enough so I can get my hands on it one day.<< And that would seem to be only way for a person of average means to ever own a home in SoCal: to inherit one.
Originally Posted By seanyoda << I was lucky enough to grow up in a genuine Joseph Eichler home over in Orange, which is the antithesis of a McMansion. I don't live in Orange anymore, but I hope my folks hang on to that awesome house long enough so I can get my hands on it one day >> Lucky is right. That's pretty cool.
