Concept art for California Adventure’s upcoming Little Mermaid dark rideI have heard the faintest whispery whispers – the scarcest whiff of rumor – that the dark ride based on The Little Mermaid might once again have been given the go-ahead for Florida’s Magic Kingdom. The attraction, already planned and designed for Fantasyland, was allegedly on its way to the greenlight last year before the economy started to crumble. Management then became timid and froze all expansion plans indefinitely, putting Ariel on ice for the time being. Since then, we’ve seen attendance go through the roof at the parks and multiple gate closures due to record crowds. So, whisper says that Mermaid is a go once more.
Now, I might be a world-renowned bloggist but I don’t actually have any real information due to the fact that I don’t know “people” who know “things.” Actually knowing “facts” would be very useful in this instance. So if anyone cares to drop me an email and elaborate on what is or isn’t going on in Florida, you know where to find me…
It’s amazing at how popular the Magic Kingdom is and how little they add to it. Little Mermaid is a step in the right direction but I bet it’s a watered down version of the California version. You would think that being the most popular park, they would invest in it just the same. I guess they feel they don’t have to since it’s always busy.
That’s probably the thinking that they use. It’s popular, so why bother making it better?
I wonder if that will hold up over time. The last major addition to the park was Splash Mountain, and it will soon be celebrating its 20th anniversary. They have to do *something*.
One thing that has changed is the addition of Fastpass. In the past, running the park to capacity meant that people were soaked up by all those lines for attractions. With Fastpass, those people wind up milling around on the paths and walkways of the park, making it seem much, MUCH more crowded than it used to. It takes far less people in the park to make it unmanageable to navigate than it used to. I know they think these people are spending their extra time shopping and eating, but they’re mostly using it getting irritated and just trying to move.
Add to this the fact that the park has actually had a net loss of attractions since its peak, and the need for new attractions seems obvious.