Tron Coaster - why improve MK over others?

[DVCcurious]

We are headed next week for our first trip since 2016. We arrive Sunday afternoon and leave Saturday morning. My schedule is:

Sunday evening: Hollywood Studios
Monday: MK
Tuesday: MK
Wednesday: MK
Thursday: Epcot
Friday: MK
Saturday: go home

I have 3 MK days, 1 EPCOT day, 0.5 Hollywood studio days and 0 AK days.

I can't be the only person who tours this way. We are skipping AK because our local Six Flags (Great Adventure in NJ) has a safari ride. There just isn't enough left at AK to make it worth "losing" a MK day. We're going to Hollywood Studios to ride ToT, RnR, TSM (FP+ booked) and then get in line for SDD right at close. But there's not enough there to go back a second time.

Maybe we're weird, but I have a feeling most people spend more days at MK than the other parks. Given that "fact" (maybe true but I have no proof)....

WHY has Disney chosen to spend money updating/improving MK over the past decade while other parks suffer? New Fantasyland dollars would have been better spent at EPCOT making use of their empty buildings. Tron dollars could be better spent at Animal Kingdom.

I know Star Wars is coming. I know Pandora has opened, but are people going to AK more days than MK? I don't think so. Pandora is not enough to make AK "better" than MK.

So I think the best move by Disney would be to let MK sit for the next 20 years and spend all their extra money flushing out the other 3 parks to make them on par with MK.

 

[Klayfish]

MK is, and always will be, the "heart" of WDW. It's the most popular park and I don't see that changing. So, IMO, why wouldn't they spend money to upgrade MK? It's where so many people go. It's where many, myself included, start and end their trip. Like the other parks, it could use updating and new things. I think all the parks are getting attention, which is great.

AK just got Pandora, and ROL (like it or not), and added evening hours with all kinds of things to see/do over the past several years. I love the evening "street party" vibe, it's fun.
Epcot is getting some much needed attention now.
HS just got TSL and is getting Star Wars.

No, we don't tour like you. We hit all parks fairly equally, with a slight tilt toward MK. We find plenty to do at AK. We can, and do, spend several days there. Yes, we repeat rides, but we do that in all the parks after a while.

So I understand what your saying, but just don't see it that way. Why let MK "sit" for 20 years? It needs updating, just like the other parks. Of course, people can and do debate how and when they update, but I think it's good that there is always updating/building/refreshing going on.

 

[ForMyBoys]

We tour very differently then you. We stay on the Boardwalk and most of our time is spent bouncing between Epcot and DHS. We have hoppers and for sure will try to do a morning and evening at AK. I love their safari ride, lion king show and everest coaster. I'm sure we will love FOP. I always thought AK was underrated and I'm bummed this time that there are likely to be more crowds. So I do not think it is a waste of time.

We will prob hit MK for a few hour at night a couple days and we will likely rope drop it once. The reason we like MK is the ambiance but I can't say a specific ride calls us to that park. I personally find many of the MK rides outdated and was glad to see the updates that have already happened and the ones to come.

 

[Anchored]

We are AP's and go every week
Of the last 11 times we visited, we went to Hollywood Studios 3 times, Epcot 3 times, MK 3 times and AK twice. If we didn't take friends, we would have went to MK the same amount of times as AK and the studios and EPCOT more. There is no way in heck I would do 3 MK days and skip AK. I love AK, it is probably my favorite park.

Studios 2/10 (to see new Pixar stuff - Edna Mode, Monsters, num num cookie etc)
Epcot 2/7 Festival of the Arts
MK 2/4 - just popped in for the Super Bowl MVP parade
Studios/AK- 2/2
MK/Epcot 1/31 - had friends in town and took them
MK - 1/23
Animal Kingdom 1/19
Studios - 1/13
Epcot - 1/12

 

[mom2rtk]

Tron will bring in more additional bodies to the MK than it adds capacity for. That park does not need additional bodies. It should have gone in one of the other parks.

 

[Klayfish]

Tron will bring in more additional bodies to the MK than it adds capacity for. That park does not need additional bodies. It should have gone in one of the other parks.

Do you think it's going to be that popular? I'm not saying it won't, I don't know. MK will always be very crowded.

I'm excited for it and can't wait to see it. Though as much of a WDW apologist as I am, I sort of wonder if it was better for them to add a new ride or use that money to update/refurb existing ones...Buzz, Stitch (do something with the building), Tomorrowland Speedway (needs new cars), CoP, Jungle Cruise, etc... Then again, I don't get paid to make those decisions, so hopefully Tron will be awesome and they've got future plans for MK updates.

 

[mom2rtk]

Do you think it's going to be that popular? I'm not saying it won't, I don't know. MK will always be very crowded.

I'm excited for it and can't wait to see it. Though as much of a WDW apologist as I am, I sort of wonder if it was better for them to add a new ride or use that money to update/refurb existing ones...Buzz, Stitch (do something with the building), Tomorrowland Speedway (needs new cars), CoP, Jungle Cruise, etc... Then again, I don't get paid to make those decisions, so hopefully Tron will be awesome and they've got future plans for MK updates.

It won't be anywhere near Star Wars popular. But a new coaster? Yeah, it will be really popular. It will draw lots of new people. This is one of the few cases where I think they should have upgraded the park in a less obvious way. The theater would have been good. It would absorb bodies without (IMO) raising the overall body count. But then I suppose Disney and I might have different priorities in that regard.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

They are building a Guardians of the Galaxy ride and a Ratatouille ride in EP. Pandora just opened and Star Wars and a new Mickey ride are on their way in DHS. WDW isn't ignoring the other parks.

 

[Conno]

There just isn't enough left at AK to make it worth "losing" a MK day. Given that "fact" (maybe true but I have no proof)....

I spend more time at each of the other parks individually than I do at the MK. If you're visiting a park purely for the rides and you only like certain rides - then sure. What about the shows, characters, atmosphere, and night time spectaculars?

If DAK is just "a safari ride" to you, then you're absolutely right not to go. I'm not sure the rest of the general attendee population agrees with you though.

 

[Brett Wyman]

I think AK is amazing and couldn't imagine skipping it. Your logic is a little strange to me since Disney just spent 500 million to build Pandora at AK, built Toy Story Land at HS, almost done with Galaxies edge at HS, building Guardians ride at epcot, building Ratatouille ride at Epcot, redoing illuminations at Epcot. And MK is just getting Tron. Seems like they are spending the least cash at MK at the moment. And the next rumored major update after GE, is the complete overhaul of Future World.

 

[FCDub]

If they didn't do anything to MK, people would just complain that Disney is being complacent because they know people will go to MK regardless.

Damned if they do, damned if they don't.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

Um... what?
All 4 of the parks have/are getting a number of new attractions.
Admittedly some I do not care about but still even I cannot deny the fact that each park has or is getting a number of updates.
MK is the park I spend the most time at because it has the most attractions and that's a fact.
That does not negate the fact that the other parks are seeing a lot of changes.
Also not sure what your title really has to do with your thread on a whole.
OK so MK is getting Tron.... Epcot is getting Beauty and The Beast sing along, Ratatouille, GoTG coaster, Space 220....
HS recently got TSL and will be getting Run away rail road and SWGE....
I don't keep up with AK a ton but Pandora is not quite 2 years old so pretty new.

 

[Ds4angels]

I'm just surprised you would compare Great Adventure to AK. AK is a beautiful park, the Safari ride is amazingly better then GA. The shows are beautiful and Pandora is on of a kind.
Have you actually been on KS at AK?
As to why Tron in MK. My thought is to bring some new for the older crowd

 

[Micca]

This data is from 2015--from The Motley Fool. If you have the #1 park on the planet, you try to keep it coming with new attractions. Logistics/space might also be in play regarding the placement of the Tron coaster.

Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida

No surprises: Walt Disney World's flagship delivered another first-place performance in 2015. Attendance rose 6%, to 20.5 million visitors. It was the world's most visited park for the 10th year running, and its American winning streak extended to at least 15 years. The park is not currently undergoing any major construction or revision projects.