Rumors about a Disney Extreme Park

[hauntedmansiongirl]

I just talked to my sister who is down in Orlando, and she said that everyone down there (incl. the hotel staff- non-Disney) is talking about Disney making a 5th, extreme themed park at WDW. Has anybody heard anything about this? Thanks!

[Scar]

I've heard about it, but it probably won't happen until after they build the parks in Texas, Indiana, Missouri, and The Carolinas.

[Genie1953]

I've heard about it, but it probably won't happen until after they build the parks in Texas, Indiana, Missouri, and The Carolinas.

What parks would these be?

[DizneyFreak2002]

What parks would these be?

All thrill based parks.. BTW, the monorail will connect to every one of them to, via Orlando!!!!

[Dragongirlx]

All thrill based parks.. BTW, the monorail will connect to every one of them to, via Orlando!!!!

And don't forget the one in Scotland - that's going to be one long monorail line

[btharvey]

Yep ... it'll go through the Atlantic Oceannull. Cars will queue up for miles, and the trip will only take about (4115 miles @ 35 mph) 4 days, 21 hours, 58 or 59 minutes. The driver's section will be reserved for ... reserve drivers.

[SBETigg]

I just talked to my sister who is down in Orlando, and she said that everyone down there (incl. the hotel staff- non-Disney) is talking about Disney making a 5th, extreme themed park at WDW. Has anybody heard anything about this? Thanks!

You'll have to forgive the good-natured teasing. What people mean is that this is a rumor that has floated for ten years or more. It has never really gotten past the rumor stage, and it's pretty doubtful that it will happen at this time or for the next five or ten years. You'll hear a lot of things from CMs, past or present, or locals that don't have any bearing on the reality of what's in the plans for WDW, and some that do turn out to be true. This one has been shot down pretty thoroughly.

[JabberJaws]

Yeah this rumor has persisted in one form or another for quite some time, the most prominent that I can recall being a Disney Villains themed park w/ mostly thrill rides/attractions.

For one though, it is just a rumor. Two, IMO a disney "extreme" park or thrill park will NEVER happen. Disney is a family destination through and through and they would never build a park based around a single group of people (thrill seekers), plus..fiscally it wouldn't work and wouldn't fit with Disney's branding.

That being said, there have been talks of Disney creating an experience similar to Discovery Cove at Sea World, utilizing the Bay Lake area. This would be an upcharge "theme park" but not really a theme park anymore than Discovery Cove is a theme park. It would be built around extreme-ish natural experiences (skills courses, outdoor walking/nature hikes, etc.) This could be what is being talked about down there?

Let me do add this one caveat in there though, speaking from experience as I was an in-park frontline CM as well as a disney corp CM (in marketing), CM's really know very...very little. Basically about as much as the general public, though they like to act like they know a lot!

[seanyred]

I've heard about it, but it probably won't happen until after they build the parks in Texas, Indiana, Missouri, and The Carolinas.

Hey you forgot about Disney buying out Six Flags near Chicago and making it a Magic Kindgdom

[Joannelet]

You know this drives me crazy because when I was a cast member in 1998 we would have to attend tons of classes. One of our classes was with an imagineer (dont' remember which one sorry-if I look in my notes I'm sure I can find his name...) but he had said THEN that there was 5 theme parks in Orlando. We questioned him on this for a long time and he wouldn't give us ANY info except that something was being worked on that an area was being worked on etc....We were asking him if he was including the water parks in this etc and he said NOPE actual theme parks like the 4 that we know. We were looking for areas that were being developed at the time trying to figure out where this "5th park" was to no avail. We did find an area where they were working but that was by animal kingdom and well its where animal kingdom lodge stands today......
This was in 1998!!! I still have NO idea what this guy was talking about!!!!

[forever a child]

Hey you forgot about Disney buying out Six Flags near Chicago and making it a Magic Kindgdom

Louisville, Kentucky is now up for grabs!

[DizneyFreak2002]

THIS JUST IN: Disney is building a new park in Virginia called Disney's America... Oh wait, nevermind... LOL...

[Supercali]

There was an article in the Orlando Sentinel about Reedy Creek's projections for the next 10 years of WDW. It implied that there may be a 5th major park, but it wouldn't be open before 2013. I think it assumed that it may open sometime between 2014-2018. The article also said that there may be two minor parks (like a water park, etc.) open within the next 10 years. As for the theme of the major park, I don't know, has anyone else heard any recent good rumors?

[seanyred]

There was an article in the Orlando Sentinel about Reedy Creek's projections for the next 10 years of WDW. It implied that there may be a 5th major park, but it wouldn't be open before 2013. I think it assumed that it may open sometime between 2014-2018. The article also said that there may be two minor parks (like a water park, etc.) open within the next 10 years. As for the theme of the major park, I don't know, has anyone else heard any recent good rumors?

right now I wouldn't hold your breath. Seems like they are more focused on the MK expansion.

Personally I would prefer to see each park get an expansion instead of just adding a 5th gate. Especially DHS and AK.

[Supercali]

Why can't they add a fifth theme park and add to their existing parks? It's not like they don't have the money.

[Scar]

Why can't they add a fifth theme park and add to their existing parks? It's not like they don't have the money.

One of the main problems is they wouldn't be able to staff it at $8.00/hour.

[Ian]

Why can't they add a fifth theme park and add to their existing parks? It's not like they don't have the money.

It's not about having the money or not having the money, it's about spending your money wisely. What possible upside is there for Disney to adding a 5th gate? It's going to cost them well North of a billion dollars and what will they get for it in return?

The only possibly reason to add a new park is to make more money. How will they make more money by adding a 5th gate? Will more people come to WDW if they have a new park? Maybe in the short term, but long term almost definitely not. People's vacation budgets are relatively fixed. Will people spend more money when they visit? Probably, because ticket prices will be raised, but overhead will go up too.

It's actually a relatively simple equation. Will spending one or two billion dollars to build a new theme park plus the hundreds of millions it takes to operate the park every year generate enough additional revenue in return to make it a wise investment.

Also, as Scar mentioned, where will they get the workers to staff this park? They're already dreadfully short of competent, Disney-quality labor. By creating a need for an additional 5,000 - 10,000 Cast Members will they be putting themselves in an untenable labor situation? More untenable than the one they're in right now, that is.

And here's another thing to consider ... if Disney really wanted to build a 5th park for Orlando the time to start it was 2 years ago when the economy was softening, labor costs were way down, materials costs were down, and you could have had the new park ready to open just in time for the economy to recover and really cash it. Why start now when the economy is finally starting to show signs (however minor) of a recovery? Costs are going to go up and by the time you get the park opened it'll be too late to take advantage of the renewed interest in travel.

[caryrae]

I heard the next Park would be the "It's A Small World Park" with that song being piped in all over the Park all day long.

[Hammer]

The only possibly reason to add a new park is to make more money. How will they make more money by adding a 5th gate? Will more people come to WDW if they have a new park? Maybe in the short term, but long term almost definitely not. People's vacation budgets are relatively fixed. Will people spend more money when they visit? Probably, because ticket prices will be raised, but overhead will go up too.

It's actually a relatively simple equation. Will spending one or two billion dollars to build a new theme park plus the hundreds of millions it takes to operate the park every year generate enough additional revenue in return to make it a wise investment..

I agree that long term, there will not be any real benefit. They still need to spend money to maintain and hopefully add to the 4 parks that are already there in Orlando.

Also, as Scar mentioned, where will they get the workers to staff this park? They're already dreadfully short of competent, Disney-quality labor. By creating a need for an additional 5,000 - 10,000 Cast Members will they be putting themselves in an untenable labor situation? More untenable than the one they're in right now, that is.

And here's another thing to consider ... if Disney really wanted to build a 5th park for Orlando the time to start it was 2 years ago when the economy was softening, labor costs were way down, materials costs were down, and you could have had the new park ready to open just in time for the economy to recover and really cash it. Why start now when the economy is finally starting to show signs (however minor) of a recovery? Costs are going to go up and by the time you get the park opened it'll be too late to take advantage of the renewed interest in travel.

Disney has and will continue to have a staffing problem due to the low wages they pay. As Florida is a right to work state that prohibits strikes, the unions will never truly have any real bargaining power. Disney knows this and can offer lower benefit packages. If Disney wants to get the "Disney" quality labor, they need to raise wages.

As the economy is starting to show signs of recovery (and while some may see it as minor, history has shown that economic recoveries start out small and take a few years to fully take hold), Disney should pour the money into the expansion of Fantasyland. When that is ready in a few years, travel should be back to normal levels (as travel is one of the last industries to recover as vacations are planned in advance).

[Supercali]

I understand that many on the boards would like to keep WDW in a time capsule, but I must disagree. Sure, right now with the current economy it wouldn't be wise to add a fifth park. However, within the next 10 years the economy and population will grow enough to more than support it. We can all make up reasons why they should or shouldn't add a fifth park, but I trust that the company knows more about the numbers and facts than we do. Time will tell how the fifth park scenario plays out.