If you want to ride the big attractions here
you have to get to them either really early or really late at night.
The dark ride attractions can have lines that back up to an hour
sometimes and the ride only lasts a couple minutes. Also if you/
your kid wants to go on Dumbo, plan for a wait. There is only a
limited number of Dumbos to ride in and you might be stuck there
for quite a while.
* Insider tip: If you want to ride a "classic dark ride" and do
not want to wait in a long line, most people ignore Pinochio and
Snow White's rides which are located opposite Peter Pan and Mr.
Toad. The reason they are ignored is because they are not as good
as the other two in most people's opinion, but they are still ok.
· If you are in the park around Christmas time, you need to check
out It's a Small World Holiday. This annual transformation occurs
in early November and they decorate the entire attraction and change
the soundtrack. The facade is covered with thousands of lights and
its incredible to see.
My thoughts/observations from February 20, 2009 and my first ride throughs of the newly updated/reopened Small World Attraction:
I finally made it on Small World. I was rained out the past two trip attempts since it has re-opened. The wait was posted at about 20 minutes. The first time we waited no more than 10 but the second time it was about 25 due to a boat getting stuck at the launch.
I thought there were some great changes/updates with the rehab and then some things that really bugged me.
- First the good. I thought the overall look of the attraction was fresh, clean, and great! All the dolls I noticed seemed to be present and working, no voids like before. The new lighting systems really showcased some of the scenes and looked good. As I mentioned back in December when it opened the new flume and boats work and have nothing too interesting to comment on except I thought the boats looked a little too plastic.
- The new sound system and mix was a net positive. I really enjoyed being able to clearly make out some of the instruments and some of the new pieces worked well. One area that did bug me was the solo Ariel had.. I thought this sounded awkward and really did not work well.
- The American scene that was added before the finale was ok... the it was an interesting choice to go with a Western theme for the US..
- The Lazygeek had an interesting observation. He thought the American Scene reminded him of Superstar Limo.. with the lighting, the Hollywood Bowl (I guess that is what it is as you exit the room?) and then the larger than life Woody and Jessie... I found that kind of funny and at the same time made sense almost..
- As for the Disney Characters being added to the attraction.... I was disappointed with the way the additions were done. Let us skip the debate if they should be there or not for a second and just look at the implementation. Adding them is one thing, but making them the focal point of so many scenes just does not seem correct to me. If they were added and off to the side or a supporting role I do not think it would have bugged me too much, but making them all front and center and in your face just did not seem right. If my memory serves none of the character dolls move or blink.. they are all static (anyone know for sure.. I only went on it twice so not 100% certain), I thought this made them feel like props almost in some cases. I found some of them to really be out of place.. for example the Finding Nemo characters.. yes the story takes place there, but they really have nothing to do with the country, culture, etc... or Lilo and Stitch... at least some are fairy tales or stem from folk lore of the region/country and those seemed to work a bit better but the implementation still rubbed me the wrong way.
- I know there has been quite a few bytes of internet data taken up with debates, rants, etc... about the changes and how they do not fit with the theme/story of the attraction verses those who think an update is a great way to breath new life into an old attraction. I come down somewhere in the middle on this debate. I agree Disneyland should not be a museum and that change is sometimes good (for example retiring Fantasy in the Sky to replace it with Believe and then Remember). But on the other hand change for changes sake just does not work for me and sometimes I think it sends an attraction backwards (for example the Tiki Room in Florida). I think Small World is somewhere in a gray area and I am not sure where I come down. Overall I do not think its going to effect the head count one way or the other. Small World always has a decent crowd and the popular holiday overlay keep its turn styles clicking. Which really begs the question why add the characters? And why make these new characters the focal point of many of the scenes? Seems to me that does not fit the storyline of the attraction. I am curious what the new/current description for the attraction is, I did not catch the sign this trip, I will next trip to see if they updated it or if its still the same as before.
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