Frozen & Marvel Land Construction, Disneyland Parking, Comments Policy, Etc.
With a record (probably) number of construction projects currently underway around the world, there’s no shortage of Disney Parks updates right about now. Unfortunately, we don’t know anything about any of those, but we have the next best thing: parking rumors. 😉
We also take a look at a variety of Disney news and rumors, none of which merit their own blog post, so we thought we’d share those, too. From the ground-breaking on the Marvel and Frozen lands to the future of runDisney at Disneyland, there’s a lot to cover. We also offer a quick housekeeping note on our new comment policy at the end of the post.
We’ll start with the parking rumors, as those are obviously the most exciting thing for any Disney fan. (Oh, you thought we were joking about the parking rumors?) If you’ve followed the ongoing saga of the Eastern Gateway Project or you read our recent post “The End of Disneyland as a ‘Local’s Park’” you know I’m not saying this in jest…at least with regard to me. (I know few others care, so bear with me…)
A source recently indicated to me that work is underway on a plan (dubbed “Project Cleo”) to nearly double the size of the Mickey and Friends Parking Structure, with a new, adjacent structure taking over the existing Pinocchio surface lot.
The parking trams would be rerouted so the security and tram loading would be on the ground level of the new structure, and new escalators would be added. All of this is interesting from a space-saving perspective, as it would allow the footprint of this new structure to be significantly-larger than it’d be if it occupied the Pinocchio lot alone. Above is a graphic illustrating how this would look.
No word yet on whether this design has been greenlit yet by Disney, or whether the proposal has been discussed with the Anaheim City Council. Given that, it appears questionable as to whether this could be ready in time for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. If this were to happen, it should take considerably less time to build than the Eastern Gateway, but construction would likely need to commence by early 2018 at the absolute latest to have it ready on time–and that’s even with a fairly condensed timeframe.
From our perspective, this project makes a ton of sense, and would seem to be the best solution with the Eastern Gateway Project at an impasse, and that likely remaining the case until Fall 2018. It would behoove both Anaheim and Disney to pursue this course of action, but then again, it would’ve behooved both to get Eastern Gateway built, so who really knows anymore?
On a tangentially-related note, it appears that runDisney and Disneyland are on poised to cancel all future events on an indefinite basis. WDWNT is reporting on this rumor, attributing it to construction. We’d expect an official confirmation from Disney–citing this same rationale–in the very near future. The actual rationale for these cancellations is more complicated.
While it’s probably not huge news to most people reading this, one of Disney’s biggest construction projects started with week, with the commencement of Hong Kong Disneyland’s Marvel and Frozen expansion (that will also bring the park a new castle).
This construction makes the start of six years full of new attractions and entertainment, with experiences opening almost every year between 2018 and 2023. The first thing to open will be a “Moana-themed entertainment venue in Adventureland” next year. Oddly, this is not referred to as a Moana stage show, but we assume that film will feature heavily into this.
After that, it’s expected that the Ant-Man shooter attraction (replacing Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters) will open in 2019. With Buzz already closed, it’s not inconceivable that this attraction could open in late 2018.
The Marvel and Frozen centerpieces of the expansion will be in the later stages, but with Hong Kong Disneyland needing a shot in the arm in terms of attendance, we would not expect this project to be any more prolonged than necessary.
Over in Paris, it has been confirmed that Phantom Manor will close for a 9-month refurbishment beginning on January 7, 2018. We are quite optimistic about this, as there are no obvious ways to screw-up this attraction (absent adding Eddie Murphy in a terribly ill-advised movie tie-in), but a number of ways it could be nicely plussed.
At Walt Disney Studios Park, rumors still swirl about how Marvel will be added to that park. Its (former) parent company already revealed the skeleton of a 10-year plan that calls for over $2 billion of capex investment, with the main expenditures being Marvel attractions and entertainment, so it’s really a matter of what not if at this point.
In other news & notes, BaseLine Tap House opened at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World. EasyWDW has a review of what should be a nice waiting area for getting properly liquored up before dealing with the hordes in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
Frozen Fantasy and Duffy’s Heartwarming Days for Winter 2018 at Tokyo Disney Resort, along with the rather unfortunate-looking Pixar Playtime event at Tokyo DisneySea. Here’s hoping that’s a colossal failure and the Pixarification of Disney’s best theme park comes to an end.
Finally, a housekeeping note on our commenting policy. Up until now, we haven’t really had one. I’ve taken a fairly laissez faire attitude towards reader comments. I’ve felt this approach has been a necessary counterweight to my blog posts. I’m unabashedly and unapologetically opinionated about pretty much everything (perhaps you’ve noticed? 😉 ), and having a robust comments section with articulated positions that disagree with me is something that I view as a strong asset to the site.
Unfortunately, in the last several months, I’ve noticed a rise of comments that include personal attacks or lack appropriate decorum. This should come as no surprise, as the level of public discourse has continued to drop during that time. We have higher standards than that. We will no longer tolerate personal attacks or hostile comments without merit; we will be deleting any such comments by marking them as spam. As always, following Wheaton’s Law is a good practice, as is not saying anything online that you wouldn’t say in person.
This is very unlikely to impact anyone reading this. No comments will be deleted on the basis of the expression of their substantive opinions with regard to Disney. This is an issue of personal attacks and insults. Nasty comments are still a very small minority of all comments, and of those few that are posted, 95%+ are from “readers” with no comment history. By and large, the regular group of commenters is a strong group. I hope spirited debate will continue in the comments, as I think this site has one of the best comment sections of any Disney site. (Of course, I’m obviously biased.)
That’s it for this update! To follow our adventures, find us on Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook! For Disney updates, discount information, a free download of our Money-Saving Tips for Walt Disney World eBook, and much more, sign up for our free monthly newsletter!
YOUR THOUGHTS…
Have any comments about this update? Any thoughts on the various news and rumors? Do you find the topic of Disneyland parking as downright exhilarating as I do? Any questions? Last-minute personal attacks to share before we roll out our new comment policy? 😉 Leave your thoughts in the comments!
Are there any kind of parking permits that can be purchased that give special permission to park closer to the gates? Extended family and myself are planning on coming down this October and renting a large van. We’ll have a couple elderly folks with us, and it would sure make things easier on them.
Any rumors on the rest of the Toy Story area? I just keep hearing next summer but no dates. 🙁
Memorial Day weekend is what I have read.
Yours is my favourite (and most helpful) Disney blog! I recommend it to everyone who asks me about planning a Disney holiday. Sorry to hear that you have to deal with inappropriate comments. Keep up the great work! Thank you!â¤ï¸From
The parking at DLR makes sense. It will be interesting to see what my “home park” morphs into from here. Phantom Manor “plussed” would be awesome, nice to see this. Hong Kong changes: I did not know about the Buzz-kill (ha!?) for Ant Man, but given the raves on mainland China’s version, makes sense. As for rants and raves, sorry to see this site also took a hit by way of personal attacks rather than simply “differing experiences” or “differences of opinion / excitement.” On a side note: Thanks for links to other pages for additional information. Going back through this and another post to read up on the additional interests. Much obliged!
I am so sorry to hear you’ve had such nasty comments! I do hope you can take those people and their comments with a grain of salt and are able to overlook them. I know that’s easier said than done though. But your blog is wonderful and I love the personal touch each post brings.
Most of the nasty comments aren’t directed at me (some are), but I’ve learned to grow thick skin over the years doing this blog. We put ourselves ‘out there’ and part of that entails people thinking that they’re entailed to offer personal ‘critique’ about us. Oh well!
I second what Ann said. You’re blog is amazing. Not only is it incredibly detailed and informative, it’s so funny and fun to read. And your photos are insane! Most of us appreciate all you do as well as like to read fellow reader’s comments. I’m sorry it came to this, but please remember 99.9% of us really love and appreciate your blog!
I hate to be the one to ask, but due to the timing of the marathon rumors, could the cancellation be related to the recent events in Las Vegas? The WDW event is entirely within Disney property and therefore easier to control, while the Disneyland event is on city streets. I’m sure Anaheim doesn’t have the security resources of major cities like NYC and Boston. Among the other stated possible reasons, the new added security risks may be the breaking point to cancel the event.
The DL running events have been up in the air in the running community months before the Vegas tragedy, the rumors just haven’t surfaced on general Disney sites until now.
I assumed you already had a fairly stringent policy on policing comments, seeing as it’s much rarer to see those obviously bogus attacks as you do on other sites.
I enjoy reading differing views, and sometimes people can get passionate about how they feel. No problem there.
But when people are just trying to drop bombs, and often simply because they hate Disney, it sucks.
I appreciate your diligence in this area.
Hopefully only get one or two of my posts get deleted a year.
HAHAHA. Wheaton’s Law. As an avid TableTop watcher (and Star Trek fan), I appreciate the reference.
Also, I’m sad about the runDisney possible cancellations. I was hoping to do the Light Side 5K with a bunch of my family. Disneyland is an easier geographic meet-up spot than Disney World for us. I’ll be sad if they don’t end up having any events this year.
I kind of wonder if runDisney expanded too much, the quality of individual events went down, and the price went up – all at once, creating a sudden drop in attendance. I could see pulling back on events and just doing one or two at each park in a year and just making sure they were really well done. I love runDisney and I would hate to see it disappear entirely from Disneyland.
I left the actual rationale for the (inevitable) runDisney cancellations intentionally vague because my information is incomplete. The major factor known to me is the standoff between Disney and Anaheim. As anyone who has run these events knows, there’s significant collaboration between the two, and in the current climate, every interaction between Disney and Anaheim has been about as pleasant as a root canal.
That’s about the only issue of which I’m certain. In talking to others familiar with runDisney, it has been suggested to me that rising costs of the events (for Disney), lackluster registration numbers (even races that have technically “sold out” on the site at the last minute have not actually sold out), lack of a need (one of the big motivations for runDisney events at WDW is to increase occupancy/attendance during the off-season, something unnecessary at DL). I can’t speak to the veracity of any of those things being the actual motivation, but it all sounds plausible to me.
The ongoing/future construction provides a convenient, face-saving excuse for Disney to hit pause on the events, and also leaves the door open for resuming them in a few years once (hopefully) the political climate is better, and there’s a bit of pent-up demand for the races. Or, Disney could just quietly never bring them back, without ever offering a rationale.
Maybe I missed this..is RunDisney only be cancelled at DisneyLand? Not WDW?
Makes sense Tom. Thanks for the follow up.
I am happy to hear this news. As someone who likes to try and go in an “off” season, which is so few and far between, maybe the run weekends will actually be slow again.
I am happy to hear this news. As someone who likes to try and go in an “off” season, which is so few and far between, maybe the run weekends will actually be slow again.
Hi Tom! Another reader here wanting to hear more rationale on the cancellation of RunDisney events. This is the first that I am hearing about it, and although I haven’t done any RunDisney events yet, it was on my bucket list as I’ve run various other events etc and was hoping to do a Disney one in the future! Price, and difficulty securing a spot, were two of the reasons I had put it off, but it sounds like from other reader comments, popularity of the events has declined. Anyways, I am kind of bummed to hear this news and would love to hear about any additional information 🙁 And finally, thanks for all you do! As I’m sure many other regular readers can agree, if we can’t BE in Disney, your blog is the next best thing 🙂
All the cancellation rumors are around runDisney events at Disneyland. The events at Walt Disney World are still going strong, and the event at Disneyland Paris seems to be coming back for a third year.
Phew!
I feel it would behoove me to add behoove to my daily vocabulary.
runDisney = Blame Star Wars. (My only aim in any gripes I have is to Blame Star Wars)
Well done on the comments update as well. A minority always have to try and spoil it for everyone else.
The runDisney Facebook groups have been blowing up with this information for months. I’ll be glad to see something definitive from Disney so all the speculation can stop. All the same, I’m glad I’ll be getting my coast-to-coast medal this year. I actually really enjoyed the Tinkerbell Half Marathon and had a great race experience!
In regards to current parking which lot is easiest to navigate in and out of at Disneyland in off season. Staying off-site, disabled parking but ambulatory albeit slowly so tram or bus with least amount of walking to allow more walking in park & ideally avoid a wheelchair. Love your blog. Read it all the time even for things that sadly I’ll never experience.
As someone who has parked in all of them and just recently took my cousin who is a quadriplegic the toy story lot is by far the best for handicapped parking. The spots are right at the tram pick up, it was great.
Thank you! Been searching all over and couldn’t find an answer. Appreciate the response. By end of trip may need a chair but hoping with plenty of breaks I’ll manage.
So no random personal attacks, but what about random personal praise with no context?
YOU DA MAN, TOM BRICKER!
BEST BLOG ALL TIME
…because I seriously check every morning for new posts. Keep up the good work!
I mean, I don’t take issue with that, but I do sort of question your judgment…
I for one love your work. Keep it up! I am on this site nearly every day.
Oh, one more thing. I recently noticed the option below the “submit comment” button to receive notifications of follow up comments on a post via email. I don’t know if that’s new or if I just never noticed it before, but that’s great. Just wondering, however, if it’s possible to have an option to receive notice only of replies to one’s own comments? I know that’s rather specific, and I’m very non-tech savvy, so don’t know if it’s a complicated thing behind the scenes, but thought I’d ask. Thanks. 🙂
It’s new and although I wish I could take credit for adding that, it was automatically added when I installed a new plugin. (Unfortunately, I believe it’s caused some unintended consequences with how things are displayed.)
I don’t know if I “care” about the parking situation, but I certainly do find it interesting! I don’t really understand why Anaheim has put the kibosh on the Eastern Gateway, (if I’ve missed a post explaining it, apologies). I am also wondering if you know anything about the timeline for the Hong Kong castle work. I haven’t seen anything definitive about when construction on that will begin, and I have a (far fetched) hope to get there to see the park before its original castle disappears! Any insight will be appreciated. Thanks so much for all your efforts on the blog Tom! Cheers.
I wish Disney would bring Duffy’s Heartwarming Days to Florida and/or California.
Hi tom
Wanted to a say how much I love and used this website and your intineries. We have just got back from a two week disney world trip (we’re from the uk) and used your intineries practically every day. Went to your recommended restaurants!! Even did the magical dining menu at grand Floridian! So wanted to say thank you!!
Curious to hear what the “actual rationale” for the RunDisney cancellation is. You kinda left us hanging on that one!
Agree with Brian, I would love some background on the cancellation “actual rationale”. I know the Star Wars Light Side registration was taking forever and would love to know more of that story. Thanks in advance!
Retweet.
Just posting this to confirm the interest in hearing the “actual rationale.”
Really Random Question That I’d Totally Understand If You Don’t Answer: After Soarin’, in what ways do you think Disney will actually expand TDS? Any potential ways that don’t include IP?
Also your blog is pretty swanky.
I have to imagine it has to do with a drop of in popularity with these events. While the runs used to sell out within hours, they now have open spots almost up until race day. I’ve also noticed a drop in the total number of runners at each event based on the results page on the RunDisney site. I think the spike in popularity with these is over. They are really just a regular race once you exit the parks, but they cost 2-3x as much.
I’ve been running several Disneyland runDisney events over the last three years, and there has been a marked decline in the quality and variety of on-course entertainment, especially outside the parks. This seems to be correlated with declining registration, though I don’t know if it is causally related.
I have a feeling it’s been coming for a while. There was a lot of frustration at Tinkerbell Weekend this year regarding everything from hiring Event Staff instead of volunteers to lack of characters on the courses. The runs seemed to be less fun and more expensive all the time.
I was coming here to post the same thing! You left us hanging and I would love to read your thoughts on the RunDisney cancellation.