Friday, October 17, 2008

Disney's New Design for California Adventure

Okay, full disclosure. I've never been to California Adventure.

But I haven't heard wonderful things about it. Some of the rides are apparently really good, but the park itself--well, people felt it was missing something. Roy Disney seemed really down on it, and that's enough for me.

So now, Disney has unveiled its plan for how to fix the park.

Here's their diagnosis and their treatment of the problem:

Basically, they feel the problem is that, when they go into the park, visitors don't feel "transported." It just kind of feels like any other theme park.

I can dig that. There really is a cool feeling you get when you walk through those little arcs under the train between the ticket takers and Main Street. You know the ones--they've got that plaque over them.

So their solution:

The sweeping overhaul will transport visitors to the California of the 1920s, when Walt Disney first arrived in Hollywood. In the same way that Disneyland's Main Street evokes Disney's hometown of Marceline, Mo., a refocused California Adventure will follow the young animator's journey to Los Angeles.


Makes sense to me. It has built in nostalgia and timelessness and a stronger Disney connection.

The price tag? $1 billion--the same price they paid to build the park in the first place.

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