Ways of the World

I firmly believe that Disney
executives and managers can learn more about how to improve
their particular theme park by rubbing elbows with the guests and cast
members than by reading a stack of reports. Get out of the office once in
a while, talk to the hourlies, wait in the queues, watch the guests.

An even better field trip might be to send the lot of Disneyland
leaders to Walt Disney World (WDW). Here, they can look with fresh eyes on
a similar yet magnified business, one confronting the same obstacles in
trying to achieve the same financial and guest satisfaction goals.

Myself, I just returned from two weeks at WDW. Two weeks of pleasant
surprises and unfortunate disappointments. In all, plenty of time to see
areas that Disneyland can learn from its cross-country cousin.

Photo by Sheila Hagen

Disney couldn’t care less about anniversaries, but their fans do.

I purposely planned to be in Orlando October 1st, the 20th anniversary
of Epcot. Alas, when I arrived that morning, I saw no banners to mark the
occasion. There was no “20 Years of Epcot” exhibit. No special
ceremony. No speeches. Not even a commemorative pin.

Most of the cast members I spoke with were unaware of the day’s
significance. The chipper host at the Guest Relations counter caught on —
with some prodding…

I asked: “I was wondering if you’ll be doing anything special for
today’s anniversary?”

Host (smiling, though his eyes betrayed some confusion):
“Anniversary?”

Me: “Yes, today is Epcot’s 20th anniversary.”

Host (smiling even more warmly): “Well, it’s difficult to devote a
celebration to just one of our parks. We’re an entire resort. And, in
fact, it’s not just Epcot’s anniversary today. It’s all of Walt Disney
World’s!”

Me: “True, but I didn’t expect a 31st birthday party for the Magic
Kingdom.”

Host (somehow still smiling): “Actually, we are celebrating the
anniversary of the entire resort, in fact the entire company, with our 100
Years of Magic celebration. The promotion has been extended due to popular
demand.”

Popular demand? I restrained myself from laughing. Demand from whom?
The accountants who don’t want to budget for new signs and brochures? I
cannot imagine ANYONE booking a return visit from out-of-state just to get
one last chance to look at what pretended to be resort-wide festivities.
Now, I adored the main exhibit at Disney-MGM Studios (a Cliff’s Notes
version appeared at DCA’s Animation Building), but it seemed to be drawing
Mr. Lincoln-sized audiences.

More visible were kiosks with bite-sized history lessons for toddlers.
Forced “In Walt’s own words…” recorded spiels before each
parade and show. A couple of borrowed parades. None of which bodes well
for Disneyland’s 50th.

I spent quite a bit of time not only enjoying WDW attractions, but also
watching others enjoy them. And, I’ll tell you, few attractions generated
smiles so huge — at least for the youngsters — as the Magic Kingdom’s
Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (on its way to Disneyland in the
spring) and Disney-MGM Studios’ Playhouse Disney Live show (coming to DCA
about the same time).

Disneyland’s Pooh ride sounds like an abbreviated version of WDW’s, but
will retain all the highlights, especially the vehicles bouncing with
Tigger and floating in the flood, as well as the nifty rain effects.

Playhouse Disney Live is a show I thought should have been featured at
DCA since Day One. The soundstage setting is sparse, the storybook
backdrop modest, the effects (bubbles, streamers) minimal– in short, it’s
affordable.

Every performance, despite low overall attendance in the rest of the
park, was standing room only. The plot — sharing stories about various
Disney Channel characters to relieve mouse Tutter’s shyness — is flimsy.
The few adults without children in the audience looked bewildered. But
most of the kids (not counting those who shrieked in terror at the sight
of an 8-foot-tall bear) were on their feet dancing, singing and cheering
from start to finish.

Among WDW’s other top crowd-pleasers, the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
is also on its way to DCA and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin and
Rock’n Roller Coaster have long been on the short list of possible
additions.

A few years ago, WDW’s Main Street Cinema became a shop. Then the fire
station became a store. Now, I see that within the last year the Emporium
has been expanded straight across Center Street. The left side of Main
Street is now one long mega-Disney Store from Town Square to the Hub.
Inside, of course, were the same old T-shirts and plush, just in greater
quantities.

ODV carts are also on the rise, making even the Magic Kingdom’s
ultra-wide streets difficult to navigate. The only time I couldn’t spot a
refreshment cart was in the sweltering hour before SpectroMagic — with a
captive audience of thousands staking out their spots along the parade
route.

The most impressive new shopping experience was the Downtown Disney
Marketplace’s high-energy toy store, Once Upon a Toy. Here’s a concept
worth copying.

Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix

WDW doesn’t have a monopoly on friendly employees. Sure, I came across
dozens of exceptional cast members during my trip. I also ran across an
unusually large number of sourpusses, including a grumpy bus driver, a
bitter ferryboat captain, and several clueless or lazy food servers.

What surprised me most, though, was the number of wonderful non-Disney
employees I met along the periphery. The bubbly waitress at the TGI-Friday’s
at the Crossroads, the hard-working hostess at the neighboring Chevy’s
Mexican restaurant, the superb checker and manager at the nearby Winn
Dixie, the hyper-helpful clerk at the Eckerd’s drugstore.

In the early years, Disney seemed to suck all the talent out of the
local labor pool. Nowadays, Orlando’s best and brightest may be looking
elsewhere.

The most shocking part of my trip to WDW was leisurely cruising down
Lake Buena Vista and turning to the banks of the now-shuttered Disney
Institute, only to see a giant crane eating through the two-story villas
as if they were paper. As the crane’s jaws chomped into the roof, walls
shook, windows shattered and doors popped out of their hinges.

Construction crews are leveling the structures to make room for
quasi-timeshare facilities for the  Disney Vacation Club (DVC).
Currently WDW’s most successful program, DVC provides the company with a
fistful of money up front, ongoing funds through annual dues, and
guaranteed return visits for the next 40 years.

Ten years ago, Disney opened its first DVC resort on the WDW property
and planned to build DVC resorts across the country, if not around the
world. Unfortunately, while WDW’s four on-site DVC resorts have sold at an
increasingly faster pace, sales of the two resorts built away from WDW
(Vero Beach, Florida, and Hilton Head Island, South Carolina) have been
disappointing. Consequently, DVC lost interest in building away from WDW
and a few years ago sold a large parcel of coastal land in Newport Beach,
California, to Marriott’s timeshare division.

DVC found it too difficult to sell the timeshare without the adjacent
multi-day destination resort. Bringing DVC to Anaheim could, in fact, help
turn the Disneyland Resort into the “multi-day destination” it
aspires to be.

Local one-day visitors, with prepaid accommodations, would be
encouraged to extend their stay. The ability to use their membership to
stay at WDW resorts would tempt them to increase travel to Orlando.
Similarly, existing DVC members would be encouraged to visit Anaheim.

Frankly, the decision seems a no-brainer, especially in light of the
DVC trend to expand by adding on to existing hotels, such as WDW’s Beach
Club (above) and Wilderness Lodge This allows the DVC property to utilize
existing staff and facilities, such as parking lots, reservation desks and
swimming pools; to consume less acreage, and to capitalize on the hotel’s
established brand name.

The most logical choices at Disneyland would be as an expansion of the
Grand Californian or as a sister property to a highly themed hotel
attached to a proposed third gate.

DVC is one WDW success story Disneyland should make its own.

---

Send your comments to David here.