The word spread like wildfire that groundbreaking for the Fantasyland expansion started today at the Magic Kingdom. Hype surrounds this expansion, but I think the results are going to live up to the hype. The Fantasyland expansion is a wonderful project from both the fan perspective and the business perspective.
This project is going to get people to come to the Magic Kingdom. People will want to see the results of all this labor. Whether it's the revamped Dumbo ride, the princess interactive areas, or the new Voyage of the Little Mermaid E-Ticket, there are many new things to experience in this Fantasyland. By adding a variety of new attractions all at once, Disney is hoping to pull lots of people in, whether it's to meet Belle at her castle or to have a pint of apple juice (remember, it's a dry kingdom) at Gaston's Tavern.
The people who come to see and are impressed with the new Fantasyland will be more likely to purchase souveniers of their favorite parts. I'm hoping Disney will take the time to create some unique merchandise for the various parts of new Fantasyland in addition to the usual Princess t-shirts and dolls. Give the guests something they can take home that they can connect with instead of the ordinary. To be honest, I'm not even sure what these items would be, but I'm sure Disney can come up with something special.
Unfortunately, expansion takes time. We will not be seeing anything new until 2012, and construction will continue until 2013. Ideally, I believe this should have been completed in time to compete with the Harry Potter opening at Universal. However, the fruits of such a long construction period will come. Fantasyland's expansion is truly adding value to the Magic Kingdom, and that will serve Walt Disney World well for years to come.
I learned about abut this when attending D23's 1st anniversary party, but it was very "party line" sounding.
ReplyDeleteI did get pics of all the drawings that they had available to view.
I don't think Disney knows yet how exactly it's going to go.