Coco Boat Ride Area Expanded for Disney California Adventure

Disney CEO in the making Josh D'Amaro spoke about the Coco boat attraction for Disney California Adventure as one that would take its inspiration from Disneyland's classic Pirates of the Caribbean. That's a great piece of marketing fluff! What part of this could actually be real? We know there's severe space limitations in California, but Fantasyland is filled with them, and look how beautiful that area is!

So, what are those great Disney Imagineers actually up to? What will they build? 

Imagine if you will an entire land dedicated to the part of California that was influenced by the beautiful culture of Mexico. Its art, its architecture, its food, its music. Now imagine it all as an area of expansion for Disney California Adventure. It could be the equivalent of New Orleans Square in Disneyland.

What do I wish they would build? An indoor restaurant and an Epcot-ish mini Mexico pavilion with perpetual nighttime.  

Directly above is the official concept art for the Coco expansion. At the very top of this post is a piece I created with the help of several AI engines. One of the major differences between the two is my inclusion of a restaurant on the banks of the lagoon's boat ride. Think classic  Blue Bayou in California's New Orleans Square or even the San Angel Restaurante at Epcot's Mexico pavilion. The Gran Fiesta Tour may be the attraction there, but the true calling card draw is the waterside dining under a beautiful moonlit sky. Something like this will probably not happen as space is severely limited back in that corner of the park. But I wish it would. Don't you?

 

But let's imagine even more! How about making the Boardwalk Pizza and Pasta area into an extension of the Coco themed area? At the very top of this article is the new Los Amigos Plaza Restaurante. The elaborate courtyard is shown above.

Last but not least, let's re-Imagine Goofy's Sky Skool as The Three Caballeros Sky School, adding to attractions themed to this expanded land in the park. The new colors of the flight tower and the beautiful new arch lend a bit of flare to the surroundings. As far the ride itself, it's time to enclose a part of it and add in the three friends in Audio-Animatronic form. Donald Duck, and friends Panchito and Jose Carioca could sing and serenade us away from danger. Or so we think! It could be a total upgrade from what's there now and without too much work.

The little sister park next to Walt Disney's original castle park needs something this spectacular and this charming! The suits seem to have lost their way when it comes to making this park feel richly cohesive. Cars Land is a no contest smash, but the rest of the additions since have seriously been lacking, at least in my opinion. Not one single addition since 2012 has become a must-see for me, even though I love the film Big Hero 6. Will a Coco attraction do the trick to make me come back? Yes, maybe, but the ride and expansion had better be good! And an indoor restaurant will certainly affect my opinion on it, and a fully rethemed area would only make it better!

(Official concept art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)

California Adventure's Return to Excellence and It's "Bargain Basement Imagineering" at Opening

While some Disney fans like me think California Adventure has become a misguided mess (Pixar Pier and the like), others who were around at opening of the park in 2001- me included- know its not nearly the disaster now as it was then. When the announcement of a full re-envisioning was announced, anxiously awaited Imagineering to bring a bit of class to the park with Cars Land and Buena Vista Street. Yet, after a great rebirth, it seemed the park had mostly lost its way. In fact, I haven't even seen Avengers Campus or San Fransokyo because I just don't care. And count me in as one who loves Big Hero 6!

Those of us that still appreciate old school high quality projects are awaiting a sparkling new Coco boat ride, perhaps a greatly themed Pandora, and maybe even new additions to Avengers Campus. Will these balance out the cheap makeovers the park has been given since its amazing rebirth in 2012? Here's hoping! 

Let's look back on what was actually built come opening day. Why? First, it will help us appreciate the transformation and put it all in perspective- even if more recent decisions have made some of us question what the suits were thinking.  

As you'll see by looking at the concepts for the park version 1.0, the painters brush can be unintentionally (or intentionally) deceiving! Secondly, due to the cost-cutting measures of the leadership of the time, it reminds us what poor foundations the Imagineers are stuck working with while they continue trying to expand this greatly improved park. So, join me now as we go back in time to the opening of California Adventure through the artist's lens...



As we look at concept art from the first incarnation of California Adventure, let's compare what we saw in the preview center versus what the park really looked like to an opening day guest. Many visitors, myself included, expressed displeasure at what was found at this new park. So did the media and for a good reason.


Let's begin with the park entrance. The tile murals flanking the sides are really well done. The CALIFORNIA letters are a unique touch and both together clearly communicate this is not Disneyland. It's not a bad design, there's just no follow through. When the Disney advertising experts have to create a fictionalized version of the entrance for promotional purposes, this should be the first clue that the park has some serious problems and design flaws.

It is what we encounter once walking past the turnstiles that shouts "bargain basement" design. Looking right through the gates brings a very ordinary looking area, nothing to entice a visitor who is considering a day at this park.

The Sunshine Plaza reigns as the ugliest and least original park entrance area in Disney's history. Yes, this includes the even less imaginative Walt Disney Studios in Paris! Framed by an out of place replica of the Golden Gate Bridge, the environment matches a low budget outlet mall, appropriately setting the stage for what is found in most of the park.

The Sun fountain is an interesting structure, but it really belongs in an open garden at a hotel, in the midst of a walkway from the parking area or just someplace else. Not large enough in scale to impress, not a fitting centerpiece for the park. In some ways, it is appropriate. This is big and flashy with a contemporary edge- but it lacks substance.

Moving on, let's head to the Hollywood Pictures Backlot. At first glance, it is a pretty Disneyesque area, a more playful version of the main drag at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The centerpiece, and clearly the highlight at opening, is Disney Animation.

Frankly, this is one impressive showcase! Beyond the park's signature flight simulator attraction, this gem is filled with the kind of care in execution that should have been found all over the park. The Animation Courtyard has an impressive layout that dazzles, and The Sorcerer's Workshop, including Beast's Library, feels like a walk-thru dark ride, drawing guests in further and further inside. It's easy to spend an hour here just watching the transformation in the library. Well done, Imagineers! In a nod to the Studios old working animation area, The Animation Academy truly provides a fun and informative demonstration of the art of the wonderful and ageless 2-D process. (Below is altogether different concept for Disney Animation.)

Beyond this great little attraction is where the troubles begin. Wandering around the rest of this land, guests discover raw steel and bland walls lie behind the great looking storefronts. Even the seemingly impressive Hyperion Theater is really just one great optical illusion. Just a big box but one with state-of-the-art facilities inside. However, it is a facility with no lobby and no restrooms!

Nearby, the past its prime MuppetVision 3D show is found. Not too thrilling an idea or presentation. It's a quick retread from Florida to save some cash- and an attempt by Disney to relaunch a very tired but admittedly once charming franchise.

The worst of the (Back) lot, however, is the only dark ride found here in 2001. In one of the oddest moves ever for a Disney park, the Imagineers designed and built the strange Superstar Limo attraction. The building housing the ride is at once quirky and likable to some degree, but the experience inside is just plain bizarre. Hosted by an on-screen agent who seems like someone you'd never let your children be alone with, the limo ride takes you through a tongue in cheek and trendy Hollywood filled with animatronics of "B" list celebrities from the Disney Studio. It quickly became the laughing stock of the theme park industry and a symbol of everything wrong with California Adventure. Less than a year from its premier, this ride quickly disappeared forever.

In a bit of poor planning, the Backlot's main street becomes a dead end, so let's cross back over to Condor Flats, a recreation of a California desert airfield.

Condor Flats effectively marks the entrance to The Golden State district, the portion of the park that truly strengthens the California theme. The airstrip is a small area to be sure, but it houses the park's signature attraction, Soarin' Over California. All the quibbles of the queue and its minimal theming aside, this film experience is the emotional heart of the park. Californians are rightfully proud of their state and its stunning diversity of landscapes. The photography is exhilarating, the musical score heightens the mood, and the ride mechanism impresses to thrilling results. It is the single standout attraction in the park. This crowd pleaser should not have been duplicated at any other resort. Period.

The true icon of this park, and one that for the first time is positioned to please hotel guests instead of park visitors, is Grizzly Peak. No expense was spared in creating an authentic and beautiful mountain environment. The rockwork created by the Imagineers ranks with the best of their efforts, including Big Thunder Mountain and the younger Expedition Everest. The landscaping is superb. The network of waterfalls, winding paths and viewing areas makes this part of the Grizzly Peak Recreation Area the most beautiful location of the entire Disneyland Resort. 
(Below is an amazing piece of artwork. Like the others, makes sure you click for a larger image.)

The setting for the Grizzly River Run is spectacular and "E" ticket worthy. However obvious short cuts have been taken with this attraction, starting with the design of the watercraft. The promotional poster below shows a whitewater excursion with an authentically styled raft. Somewhere between concept and execution, the attraction ended up with standard theme park fare circular rafts. Certainly the same company that could imagine and engineer leading edge ride systems for other attractions could find a way to build an authentic raft that was safe while providing the desired thrills!

Further cost-cutting took place by the exclusion of animatronic animals. Every other nature-based attraction designed by Disney uses them to good effect. From slow moving rides like The Jungle River Cruise to the high speed adventures of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, there is simply no excuse for their absence except budgetary restraints. It's still a very fun attraction with terrific views of the park (and the less than beautiful city of Anaheim), but it could be so much more than it is.

Guests quickly noticed a trend in this new era Disney park: there may have been discounting on the attraction detail, but no expenses were lost when it came to the shops! California Adventure has some Disneyland quality shopping areas, and the Rushin' River Outfitters (below) is no exception.

Continuing a trend that began with Disneyland itself, the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail is a new take on the original park's Tom Sawyer's Island. Both provide plenty of fun as well as an area where younger visitors can run free. It is a nicely themed playground but not much more.

The limited number of attractions and cutbacks aside, this region of California Adventure provides the immersive environment that Disney guests are accustomed to finding at the parks. If only the rest of the small park had this much charm and care taken with it! The glaring shortcomings are only heightened when we enter into the San Francisco area, one far removed from the Golden Gate Bridge we found at the park entrance.

This tiny little sliver of San Francisco houses only restrooms, leaving guests who expected an elegant area such as New Orleans Square in a state of shock. In place of a fully realized cityscape, we find Golden Dreams, the film tribute to the history of the state. Originally envisioned as Circle of Hands, it was intended to be a heartwarming multimedia presentation of the brave men and women who settled and worked the land. Budget cuts again derailed the project. We are now left with a small scale but warm and politically correct vision of history. Unintentionally, this show is also one of the best arguments for Disney to stop using its a film stars as part of their attractions.


As we move around the bend, the beautiful Golden Vine Winery comes into view. Of course, so does the Pacific Wharf food court, Bountiful Valley Farm, and the surprising Paradise Pier.

The winery area charms guests with a sophistication not found elsewhere. Of course, like Napa Valley itself, we find a couple of pricy restaurants among the park's vineyard. Attractions? Oh yes, Seasons of the Vine is here- yet another film, this one highlighting the process of the art of winemaking from field to table. It is a slice of Epcot Center, an undiscovered gem. The music and photography perfectly capturing the area.

Across the way on this side of the bay is the Pacific Wharf. What could have been a wonderful setting for some California themed Disney attractions is reduced to mostly a food court with a couple of bakery tours using short films to tell the manufacturing story. The educational aspects of the park are important, however, they needed to be balanced out with traditional Disney attractions to justify the full ticket price.

Butting up to the Wharf is Bountiful Valley Farm, showcasing the agricultural impact of the state. Aside from yet another film, this one a clone of an additional 3D attraction from Florida, guests to the area are left without much to do except viewing tractors and watching a quite unimaginative fountain. In the age of "bargain basement" Imagineering, it's Disney storytelling at it's sorry best.

Controversial. Cheap and tacky. Off the shelf. Not what Walt would have wanted. Paradise Pier is all these things and more. And less. Much, much less.

Once guests had experienced the limited number of attractions in the other areas and the truly good live entertainment to be found, many headed toward Paradise Pier hoping to round out their day at Disney's recreation of a seaside amusement area.

The California Screamin' coaster stands tall over the area, and it is a roller coaster ride very worthy of a Disney park. Unfortunately, it is just a coaster- no great theming to be found here. No journey to outer space, no wildest ride in the wilderness, just an exposed track reaching for the sky. It is fun, day or night, but there are no Disney touches to be found except the giant glaring Mickey head. In this new fangled park, big, loud and obvious has mostly replaced the charming nuances of designers from earlier generations.

The rest of Paradise Pier is fleshed out with carnival games, kiddie attractions, swing rides, and an impressive Ferris Wheel. There's truly nothing magical or Disney here, yet the advertising department thought this was one of the best areas to show to promote the new park. What were they thinking? The public was not fooled, and the executives at Disney were left with an embarrassment on their hands.

Which brings us back full circle to the Blue Sky Cellar, housed in the old Seasons of the Vine building. Yes, it seems Disney is seriously trying to redeem itself by re-Imagineering the park. Starting with the areas that guests complained about the most, the makeover has started. The entrance to the park will be reworked. The Hollywood Backlot will get more improvements. The Pier will be a challenge but will still be a carnival. Plans even exist for a wonderful new land and a couple of great attractions worthy of the Disney of old. Will we see them? Will the proposed changes turn California Adventure from dud to star?

What can we learn from the "Bargain Basement Imagineering"? Concept art can be deceiving, and budgets can be reduced.  Disney has learned some important lessons from trying to fool us as they did in 2001. Now, after some serious recent disasters, they are going back to the basics of good design and Imagineering quality we saw in 2012... and I, for one, can't wait to see what lies ahead in the future! It may even make me return to the park once again. 

(All art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)

Back to Disney California Adventure

Summertime means a visit to a Disney park, usually Disneyland. As a Californian now in Colorado, it takes more effort, but it is worth a day at the world's beloved original kingdom of Walt. Disney California Adventure may have its charms, but after my last visit there in 2028, I'm just not that motivated to go back since my last visit in 2018. Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout was fun, but I'm in no rush to see Avengers Campus in its current state or even San Fransokyo, although I love Big Hero 6. It's going to take Coco to get me back. I'm a sucker for boat rides! But it had better be good!

(Photograph copyright Mark Taft.)

Sprinkling a Bit of Coco at Disneyland

Adding to the slew of characters that have invaded It's A Small World, Disney has announced that Miguel and Dante from Coco will come to the Disneyland attraction as part of the park's 70th birthday offerings. Seems like a no-brainer to me! Coco is a delightful film. It just makes me a bit hopeful that Imagineering has some great ideas in mind for the coming attraction at Disney California Adventure. Perhaps shades of Epcot's classic El Rio del Tiempo? A guy can dream. 

(Concept art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)
 

My Single D23 Prediction

D23 arrives in Anaheim, California this weekend! The showcase of what's new and what's next for the Disney creative teams is always a highlight of that year. Except the last two conventions which were a bust from any imaginable angle. Robert Iger (and previously the short-lived Bob Chapek) along with Josh D'Amaro, gave us nothing but teasers. This year should be different, especially with Epic Universe looming in 2025.

Here's my singular prediction: The bulk of the biggest wow moments park expansions and additions will be for Florida's Magic Kingdom. Why? This one is pretty easy I think. In the USA for decades, Walt Disney World's first park has reigned supreme as the top attendance, most visited park. With Islands of Adventure and its star attractions- like Velocicoaster, Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure,  Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey- continuing to gain in popularity as a vacation choice, the suits and the Imagineers are not just going to give up the crown to the Mouse's most ferocious and successful competitor. It'd look pretty bad for Disney if a Universal park moved to number one in the States.

So... Beyond Big Thunder Mountain will be only the beginning. But expansion is coming, leaving major additions to Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, and the California parks in the relative dust.

This Magic Kingdom Rumor Will Make Your Head Spin!

Take a good long look at this image. Let it sink in. If you do, you'll see Frontierland may not longer exist as we know it at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disneyland World, and Tiana's Bayou Adventure will be only the beginning of a BIG, BIG, change. 

Imagineers have plans? Yes, so says Braden at Mickey Views. Check out the unbelievable- but fully reasoned out- rumor above. Then, struggle with it as I am.

Celebrating Cinco de Mayo at Epcot's San Angel Inn Restaurante

It's Cinco de Mayo, and the best place to celebrate at Walt Disney World has to be the San Angel Inn Restaurante in Mexico's World Showcase pavilion! The chips are hot, the salsa delicious, and the house margaritas are just what the celebration calls for!

This is another instance where the concept art,

thought quite nice, doesn't;t compare to the actual end result!

It's so much for than the food and drink however. Sitting on the waterside of the lagoon, boats sail on El Rio del Tiempo, the River of Time, taking passengers on their way for a fun and music filled Gran Fiesta Tour. 

As you sit there enjoying your excellently prepared tacos, perfectly cooked steak, enchiladas, or Queso Fundido, the perpetual moonlight and smoldering volcano in the distance takes you to a timeless land far away. The stresses of a Disney World vacation melt away. This is why you came to Disney in the first place!

Sure, there are many choices for Mexican food on the property, but for a uniquely Disney experience none beats this way to spend Cinco de Mayo. Is San Angel Inn Restaurante for you? Check out all the details on my Dine or Ditch review.

(Photograph copyright Mark Taft. Art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)

Harmonious is an Elegant Disaster

How can the words elegant and disaster be used to describe a single presentation? Well, when it comes to EPCOT's brand new nighttime show Harmonious, it's an apt description. There were big shoes to fill, and the Imagineering design team went over the top to satisfy guests. 

It was at once a charming multi-cultural experience with an ugly underbelly. Taking mostly well known songs from Disney films, the expectations were turned upside down as each was presented in the native languages represented by the cultures in the source material. From Moana to Coco, Lion King to Mulan, and just about everything in between, the music swelled and the vocal performances excelled. It was lovely and rich while presenting the now expected new century focus on self-discovery. There's no connective tissue, however, leaving it an odd "Greatest Hits" feel.

Where did the show fail? Where was it a disaster? Largely, the misfires were in the use and form of the large metal barges and humongous, just monstrous, ugly metal center ring. The swinging arms added little to the presentation. The projected video elements seemed almost unnecessary. For a generation glued to screens, it was a necessity, but they certainly came at a cost.

Harmonious is a show worth watching. The large tapestry of nations represented is fitting to World Showcase (and whatever world you happen to be in while at the park). The international flare has its charms, even if little use was made of the architecture of the national pavilions.

The goodbye exhortation by a young woman who seemed much too emotionally young to have real wisdom was odd at best. The overall lighting and fireworks were quite nice- but for all its strengths, none of the show- not a single bit- came close to being worth the dismantling of what was once a beautiful day or night time view of the most lovely of Disney parks.  

That, my friends is absolutely unforgivable and is the disaster part of the Harmonious equation.

The official Disney video of the show: