Beetlejuice's Graveyard Revue has closed at Universal Studios Florida, to be replaced with a new monster musical production later this year.
Festival of the Lion King has closed at Disney's Animal Kingdom, as Disney eliminates Camp Minnie-Mickey to make way for the new Avatar land. Festival of the Lion King will reopen in a new theater in the Africa section of the park, later this year.
Doc Brown's Fried Chicken has closed at Universal Studios Hollywood, as the last hold-out of Back to the Future goes away to clear the way for what we hear will be a new Simpsons-themed eatery, inspired by the wild success of the Springfield Fast Food Boulevard at Universal Studios Florida.
And the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage has closed at Disneyland. Disney's calling this an extended refurbishment, but given that the subs are wildly expensive to operate when balanced against the relatively small crowds that they can handle, coupled with ongoing Imagineering plans to bring more Star Wars to Disneyland's Tomorrowland, many fans are skeptical that we'll see the subs return. Keep your eyes on this one. If the subs sit around for months with no sign of work, that's not a good sign for their return.
Speaking of Disneyland, the California resort has announced its annual ticket deal for Southern California residents. Southern California residents can buy a 2-day ticket (one park per day) for $129, a 2-day Park Hopper for $164, a 3-day, one park per day ticket for $159, or a 3-day Park Hopper for $194. All days must be used by June 6, but Disneyland has not said anything about having to use all the days within 14 days of the ticket's first use, as it has required in the past. March 31-April 20 is blocked out for these tickets, however. Tickets are available at Disneyland.com, resort ticket booths, and many local grocery store checkout lanes.
Update: For comparison, Florida residents can buy a three-day Walt Disney World pass (one park per day) for $129 plus tax. Four days is $149 under the WDW resident deal.
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For now, there is absolutely no real evidence that the subs will not come back.
Right now, we have one real source that says that the ride will re-open in late 2014; http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2013/12/finding-nemo-submarine-voyage-at-disneyland-park-to-close-for-refurbishment-january-6/
Except it wasn't announced last year after Carsland debuted in 2012. I guess Carsland has made its mark and now attendance will go back to normal in the spring. I've seen it. I would be tempted to buy the ticket. It's a great deal, but I am planning a trip to Disney World and I'm saving my bucks for this trip.
Also, can they get rid of the baby farts smell in there?
I am a big Disney fan, and read this site often but rarely comment. Sometimes comments like this get to me.
No one here deserves anything from Disney, they're a business. Either the combination of rides/attractions at the park is worth the price, or its not. People will vote with their hard earned cash.
No one deserves anything simply for complaining. The fact that the park is an attraction and all pros and cons must be weighed for the total park package (ride capacity, cost to maintain, etc). If people stopped going, the investments would be made, but people continue to fill the parks!
People take these simple decisions far too personally. /rant over :)
But the Nemo version is mostly cartoons playing on screens. I think the only animatronics are in the lagoon before the cave scene. That's just the little girl diver and then a man diver. I don't think there are more. Then it's into a cave and it's just cartoons in the portholes from there.
It feels pointless to have all that water in there and for guests to be trapped in those leaky subs when really they are just playing cartoons on glass screens. A lot of money is wasted on the water bill and upkeep, and for what? They could build a Nemo ride at DCA and play cartoons on screens in that for 1/4 of the operating cost.
I could see if Nemo was just spectacular, but I don't think the effects work very well and frankly watching cartoons through a porthole is just not as cool as seeing those old animatronic sharks and mermaids and sea serpents and things. Just my opinion.
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