The MousePlanet Mailbag is a regular compilation of some of our reader feedback and writer responses that may be of interest to our readers. We encourage you to drop your questions, opinions, or comments to us in care of our mailbag.
Contributing writer Jeff Kober (link) opens this week’s mailbag with a letter from reader Shannon K., who writes:
My family and I have been to WDW several times and have utilized the tip boards at Animal Kingdom and Epcot frequently. I have one complaint about them; they are not consistent with the attractions and do not seem to be linked with the wait times at the attractions. This should be a very simple fix with technology today. One suggestion I have is why not allow guests to choose their first Fastpass of the day at the tip board. This would eliminate time consuming trips across the parks with kids usually asking, “Why we are we not going on any rides” the whole way.
Obviously I’m no longer with Disney. But your point has merit. I always thought they should have created centralized Fastpass locations in each of the lands, in the same way there used to be ticket booths in the various lands. In those days of A-E tickets, you could buy a ticket in centralized locations that could be used for an attraction anywhere in the park. You could step up for a Fastpass and make choices for a Fastpass in attractions anywhere in the park.
Similar machines were conceived for Universal Studios where you could choose among attractions in a given land or park area. But they never allowed you to choose for an attraction on the other side of the park. That would be the ultimate in providing customers informed choices while giving them the gift of time.
Next, staff writer Mark Goldhaber and mailbag editor Stephanie Wien answer questions about travel to the Walt Disney World resort. Bruce S. writes:
We visited Epcot last week and had the opportunity to ride Soarin’. Wow, what a ride, and what a rush to get on Soarin’ immediately when the park opened. It seemed like everyone entering the park turned right and headed right to The Land and the Soarin’ line.
I was wondering if there are any plans to change the movie that goes along with the ride and change some of the vistas you “glide” over? It would seem to me that changing the movie would be relatively simple for Disney and make the ride experience more interesting if we rode it again.
Mark responds:
There have been rumors of a new film since before the attraction opened. We heard through a trusted source that they had been told by Disney Archivist Dave Smith that a Soarin’ Over America film was in the process of filming and might be used when the attraction opened. Other rumors of a Soarin’ Over the World film have been circulating more recently.
Regardless of what may or may not have been already shot, it is likely that in the current fiscal climate that Disney will not change the film until the crowds riding the attraction start to drop, since they have no need to make changes to something that is still drawing lines upward of an hour long on slow days. You’re more likely to see a new film when it doesn’t have the longest wait in the park.
Tim J. writes:
We are planning a trip to WDW in August. My wife has made plans to take our daughters to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. I was thinking about renting some watercraft with our 8-year-old son while they are at the boutique. Can you recommend a good source for prices, type of crafts available, restrictions and rental locations?
Mark responds:
This page (link) has a list of all locations with watercraft rental. If you want to rent a personal watercraft from the Contemporary Resort ($75 for a half-hour, $125 for an hour, plus tax), check out this page (link) at the Sammy Duvall’s Watersports Centre site. Other prices elsewhere are currently:
- Canoes/Kayaks – $6.50 per 1/2 hour
- Sea Raycer by Sea Ray – $25 per 1/2 hour
- Pedal boat – $6.50 per 1/2 hour
- 12′ Sailboat – $20 per hour
- SunTracker pontoon – $42 per 1/2 hour
Note that the second list of prices includes tax.
Dina writes:
I would like this complaint to be filed with the proper party. Thank you.
To whom it may concern:
As an avid traveler to the Walt Disney World Resort, I was surprised and concerned at hearing that the Haunted Mansion will be closing during peak travel season at the World for refurbishment. Now, I, like most guests, come to the parks to enjoy the classics and while I am not against the mansion getting some attention, I am perturbed that it will mean I won’t get to enjoy it on my upcoming visit in August. I firmly suggest that you rethink the timing of this refurbishment and perhaps postpone it until the off season or perhaps, in true Disney fashion, work on the attraction during off hours.
Please take this complaint seriously as I am sure other Disney patrons and guests feel similarly. I thank you for you time and your constant “magical” efforts.
Stephanie responds:
Thank you for writing, but MousePlanet is not affiliated with the Walt Disney Company. I would suggest you direct your complaint to them:
Walt Disney World Guest Communications
P.O. Box 10040
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-0040
I understand your frustration at missing out on experiencing Haunted Mansion on your trip. It is undergoing an extensive renovation, including addition of effects that have already been added at Disneyland. The timing is such that it will be completed in time for the Halloween season.
I hope you are able to enjoy your trip even without the Haunted Mansion.
Switching coasts, the third group of letters this week relate to travel to the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim. Brian S. writes:
I just received our travel documents from Walt Disney Travel for our July trip to Disneyland. We have always purchased the dining coupon plan in the past and did so now. As part of the plan, we have always received a Character Breakfast, Character Lunch and Character Dinner.
Before, the Character Dinner was redeemable at either Ariel’s Grotto or Goofy’s Kitchen and I had already made my priority seating reservations for a lunch at Goofy’s Kitchen and a dinner at Ariel’s Grotto.
Well, a new change to the dining plan for the character dinner is that it is now only redeemable at Goofy’s Kitchen in the Disneyland Hotel. It is called “Dinner with Goofy” and is only redeemable during “Dinner Hours”. I contacted Walt Disney Travel who referred me to the priority seating reservations line. The cast member there was also unaware of the change, but confirmed that “dinner hours” are from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. only.
In my opinion, this is a significant change as spending the evening in the parks is much more desirable than leaving—which is a much easier task to do for lunch than for dinner. Since dinner at Goofy’s Kitchen isn’t cheap, simply not using that voucher would significantly lower the value of the dining plan in my opinion.
Since the Web site and all the Walt Disney Travel literature simply advertises that you receive a “Character Dinner” with the dining plan, and they don’t tell you that that dinner HAS to be at Goofy’s Kitchen, I thought I would pass this on to you so you could let the public know the new rules. Needless to say, I ended up having to change my priority seating reservations and could not get the times I had originally booked.
Thanks for all the work you do—I visit the site daily!
Thanks for letting us know about this new policy, and especially for giving such a detailed account of the change.
Jenni writes:
I was wondering if this event will make the park more crowded than usual for a Saturday afternoon? Is entry into the park part of the package? I am taking my 2-year-old to the Happiest Birthday party on July 14 and I am worried that the National Fantasy Fan Club (NFFC) will make it impossible to have a good time. I am a Passholder and have already made the reservations. Let me know if you have any suggestions. Thanks
It’s hard to say how the NFFC event will impact attendance levels. Realistically, many if not most of the attendees are already Disneyland fans who may well have been at the park anyway. However, most NFFC members represent the best qualities of Disney fans, so except for the possibly higher crowd levels I really doubt your experience would be affected. Mid-July weekends are already among the busiest of the year.
Aimee writes:
I read that the menus have finally been revised! I can’t seem to find them. Please help.
We have indeed updated our menu listings for the Disneyland Resort. You can find the updated listings under “Dining” on the Disneyland (link) and California Adventure (link) pages of our Disneyland Resort park guide.
Finally, two letters in response to staff writer Alex Stroup‘s reviews of Shrek the Third (link) and Ratatouille (link), respectively. Jeff A. writes:
For whatever it is worth, Artie wasn’t the frog king’s illegitimate son. He is identified as Fiona’s “cousin” (Shrek mentions this as he is about to sail off looking for Arthur). Although Artie talks about his dad abandoning him, his father is never identified.
Thank you for that clarification, I missed that reference.
Though, since the king turned out to really be a frog, wouldn’t that mean any of his siblings that might have produced a cousin of Fiona’s would also be a frog? Fairy tale logic can be so confusing.
Phillip S. writes:
I would draw your attention to the New York Times review of Ratatouille; I believe you can reach it at this link.
I cite but these two sentences to capture what I believe is one of the major points you may have overlooked in your review:
“At stake in Ratatouille is not only Remy’s ambition but also the hallowed legacy of Gusteau, whose ghost occasionally floats before Remy’s eyes and whose restaurant is in decline. Part of the problem is Gusteau’s successor, Skinner (Ian Holm), who is using the master’s name and reputation to market a line of mass-produced frozen dinners.”
Ed Catmull and John Lasseter have effectively killed off Disney’s direct-to-DVD line of third-rate sequels and begun to restore the luster of the Disney brand at every level… (Meet the Robinsons was utterly charming, and a welcome return to form)… much like Remy protects his mentor’s image from, well, the animated version of what Michael Eisner became to Mr. Disney’s reputation.
My daughter and I saw Ratatouille at the sneak preview a couple weeks ago and we were both in tears at the end. We caught the unmistakable message sent by Brad Bird—Walt Disney’s spirit is alive and well and in safe hands. This film is a benchmark in animation, and it will take its rightful place alongside Walt’s best work, much like Fantasia did—once the general public’s tastes mature beyond fast food.
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