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Universal Studios Wizarding World of Harry Potter. "Gringotts"


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I suspect Disney World will be one of the last to get Marvel. Why? Because its rival that is very near already has a Marvel Land, of sorts. Maybe its just me, but I feel Disney would want to offer something different than what the competitor is already offering.

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I suspect Disney World will be one of the last to get Marvel. Why? Because its rival that is very near already has a Marvel Land, of sorts. Maybe its just me, but I feel Disney would want to offer something different than what the competitor is already offering

At some point in the future, or not, Disney could decide to halt the existence of the Marvel characters at IOA.

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I suspect Disney World will be one of the last to get Marvel. Why? Because its rival that is very near already has a Marvel Land, of sorts. Maybe its just me, but I feel Disney would want to offer something different than what the competitor is already offering

At some point in the future, or not, Disney could decide to halt the existence of the Marvel characters at IOA.

Exactly right but, until they do, I still see Marvel going to other things involving Disney, before Disney World gets any Marvel rides.

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If you read through my series and enjoy it and want to learn more about Universal's rise and Disney's rebuttal, I'd also like to plug a book written by a close friend, Nick Sim's Universal Orlando: The Unofficial Story available on e-reader and paperback formats through Amazon. I happen to be named in the acknowledgements, so I'm biased, but check it out. :D

I just read this on Kindle on a flight out to Utah last week...really enjoyed it!

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I think The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will have staying power even if the Harry Potter brand loses some steam simply because the world is so well realized and the rides are awesome. I do think they should stop after Diagon Alley, though. Too much is too much.

As for Marvel Superhero Island, I would hate to see the Spider-man ride go, but this area of the park needs some reinvigorating. If they lose (or give up) Marvel, what might they replace it with? Are there any Universal properties that could warrant a new island?

Regarding Avatar Land (sorry, I know I'm replying to all kinds of stuff in one post), I can't seem to get excited about this. I don't know anybody who is really looking forward to it, either. Avatar is clearly huge, but I don't know if it has a hardcore fanbase like Potter or Marvel, despite all the money its made. But then again, I'm not that fond of Disney, so maybe that's why I'm not feeling it.

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I can't see Avatar being nearly the smashing success that Potter is. I work in the Potter area (which is why I will not be adding my thoughts or speculations on anything ride-related to this thread) and it is definitely still a huge draw. We just had a sponsored fan event last weekend and it was kind of insane. Potterheads everywhere. I'm suspecting they'll come out of the woodwork for Diagon Alley as well - I'm personally expecting another June 18, 2010. Forbidden Journey (my home ride until this past week) still generates the longest lines of any attraction in either park, and if they can produce to that level again, WWoHP is going to be an unstoppable force for a very long time.

I also can't see Spiderman going anywhere. It's the second most popular ride in IOA after Forbidden Journey, consistently running hour wait times when Hulk and Dragons are 10 minutes. It's a big draw for the families, because kids love Spiderman and it has a fairly low height requirement (40" as compared to Journey's 48"). I do hope to see that side of the park get some love though. Marvel Superhero Island and Toon Lagoon have remained largely unchanged since they opened. Dr. Doom's Fearfall is frequently forgotten, hidden back behind the main buildings in MSI. I only rode it for the first time two months ago, because I never remember that it's there until I see it from outside the park.

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  • 3 months later...

This ride looks like it will be absolutely amazing. Better than HP&FJ, better than anything at Disney World, better than...everything.

Still no exact opening date, though. A lot of the fans are getting restless. I can understand why. I'd hate to plan my Universal vacation for the day before it opens!

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According to an update this morning on ThemeParkInsider.com (which is quickly becoming one of my favorite sites...present company excluded, of course :-)), Universal has started sending out invitations for a major press event to be held June 17-20. So, the speculation now is that the public grand opening will be Friday, 06/20.

I scheduled a trip to Universal in late September...hopefully that will give the crowds a chance to calm down after the busy Summer season...but before the busy Halloween season starts :-)

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According to an update this morning on ThemeParkInsider.com (which is quickly becoming one of my favorite sites...present company excluded, of course :-)), Universal has started sending out invitations for a major press event to be held June 17-20. So, the speculation now is that the public grand opening will be Friday, 06/20.

I scheduled a trip to Universal in late September...hopefully that will give the crowds a chance to calm down after the busy Summer season...but before the busy Halloween season starts :-)

Don't count on anything until the park announces the date. The 7DMT at MK just had its Media Day 10 days ago, yet at that event the opening date was announced as May 28 and all signs arfe poining toward very few if any soft opens before that time.

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According to an update this morning on ThemeParkInsider.com (which is quickly becoming one of my favorite sites...present company excluded, of course :-)), Universal has started sending out invitations for a major press event to be held June 17-20. So, the speculation now is that the public grand opening will be Friday, 06/20.

I scheduled a trip to Universal in late September...hopefully that will give the crowds a chance to calm down after the busy Summer season...but before the busy Halloween season starts :-)

Don't count on anything until the park announces the date. The 7DMT at MK just had its Media Day 10 days ago, yet at that event the opening date was announced as May 28 and all signs arfe poining toward very few if any soft opens before that time.

Like I said...it's just speculation on a fan site.

The only thing I'm "counting on" is that it's open by September 26th :-)

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^

BlackFish is not helping Sea World one bit, Seaworld has quite the hill to climb.

I expect Gringott's to be similar to the Mummy but with HD projections and 3-D elements. Should be very interesting once it opens to see how guests flow between the 2 parks and how the line stack ups for the quasi train ride. I imagine it will be quicker to walk from park to park then take the Hogwarts Express.

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I hope the next thing Universal adds is original and different. I love Transformers, Harry Potter & The Forbidden Journey, Spider-Man, and now this looks great, but they really need something new. Maybe just a normal dark ride like you'd find at Disney. No more simulator/moving ride combos!!

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^

I understand what you are saying. Still for my money Indiana Jones at Disneyland is the best simulator/dark ride around.

It's pretty darn good, but Amazing Spiderman is great as well, as is Dinosaur lol!

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USA Today featured a "behind the scenes" look at Diagon Alley in today's Travel section:

http://www.usatoday.com/experience/america/theme-parks/diagon-alley-gringotts-wizarding-world-harry-potter/9125149/

The detail in themeing looks absolutely amazing (as we were all pretty much expecting...) I'm really curious about the "running through the brick wall" effect when entering Diagon Alley...I'm assuming some sort of holographic effect, but considering the crowds they're expecting it makes me wonder how this will work from a capacity standpoint.

I'm also hoping they're investing well (in systems, staffing and training) to make the ticketing process as efficient as possible when moving between the parks on Hogwarts Express. In the past three trips to Universal, someone in my party has experienced some sort of issue with a multi-day, multi-park ticket. Last time it was me...the gate reader was indicating all three days had been used, even though the review at guest services showed that I had only used the ticket two of the three days. Guest Services was able to straighten it out, but it took almost 45 extra minutes, so we completely missed the early opening of Hogsmeade. Some system issues are enivitable, but I'm hoping they have planned adequate resources for that component of the "guest experience" to make sure they're the exception and not the rule...

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^

I understand what you are saying. Still for my money Indiana Jones at Disneyland is the best simulator/dark ride around.

^

I understand what you are saying. Still for my money Indiana Jones at Disneyland is the best simulator/dark ride around.

It's pretty darn good, but Amazing Spiderman is great as well, as is Dinosaur lol!

http://www.themeparktourist.com/features/20140515/18008/5-disney-clone-pairs-you-may-not-recognize

#1! :P

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