Toy Story Land - Reviews, Photos, & Videos

[Nick]

With the land opening today, use this thread to share all first-hand reviews, photos or videos.

Please keep small talk to a minimum as this thread is meant for reviews. The main thread is now for general land discussion.

 

[Nick]

After visiting the land two times and having experienced everything from the Land as it transforms from day to night, the rides, food and the (limited) entertainment, here's my comprehensive review of the land.

Land theming/atmosphere
The land is very lush, colorful and vibrant at night with a nice view of the DHS fireworks to boot. I'm not sure how much the land succeeds on making us feel like toys as much as just being surrounded by over-sized toys. Either way, the land looks good and the use of the backyard fence to block out views of the large parking structure just beyond it works well. The land does have some downfalls though. The lack of any indoor spaces is an issue and the backhalf of Slinky Dog leaves much to be desired thematically (your main view is of a Back of House support building), but this isn't something that most of you didn't already know.

Unlike say, Pandora, which to me feels dead most of the time (dead in the sense that there's no kinetic energy), TSL delivers two rides that really make the land feel alive and, when the Green Army Men are performing, that adds a little extra to the land as well.

Rides
Alien Swirling Saucers - Posted wait time 45 minutes, waited 30. A clone of the Mater's Junkyard Jamboree ride system, this ride is a fun addition to the park, but definitely not worth waiting that long for. 30 minute wait was tolerable and went by quickly as we were constantly moving, but i'd even go as far as to say 20 minutes maximum is really the most one should wait for it once you've experienced it once (that was the only reason I got in at a 45 minute line - just wanted to do it once). I will note that the queue did have fans, but they weren't blowing hard enough to really make a difference. I don't even want to imagine what it feels like during the heat of the day.

Slinky Dog Dash - Rode the ride twice. Both time the wait time was posted at 145 minutes as I said in the general discussion thread. I waited 35 minutes the first ride and 27 minutes the second time. My sister, 10 y/o, really enjoyed the ride and was the reason we went a second time. As for my personal opinion, maybe I just had low expectations, but the ride did surprise me a bit. It goes faster than it looks and it has a certain kick to it in parts that's unsuspecting.

However, it did not feel longer than SDMT like many have said. Wheezy at the end of the ride is a nice touch. Overall it's a fun coaster and provides an alternative for those not willing/not tall enough to ride RNRC. Slinky also had fans in it's queue and once again, none of theme helped actually make it feel cooler, save for portable fans right at the load platform that were blasting.

Toy Story Mania - Obviously not a new ride, but it is part of the land. I did FP on the ride today and saw the "theming" or lack-thereof upon the entry into the FP queue. Certainly stands out in a land that - for the most part - tries it's best to immerse you into Andy's backyard and that whole story. As I understand it, the building that we enter is themed like a cardboard box that Andy would've used I guess (this is carried out throughout many parts of the land), but it feels too bland and the propped open push-doors make it feel temporary.

Anyway, with DCA's version reopening not long ago, it would've been nice to at least get some new games with the land opening.

Food
Ate at Woody's Lunch box tonight. I got the "Totchos" and also was able to sample both items on the kids menu as well (they messed up the order so I got one of the meals free). The Totchos portion size is pretty decent. I thought that all of the different flavors blended together very well and the dish was filling. I also got the three cheese blend grilled cheese. Overall it's fine, but I thought it was a bit too cheesy.

I waited probably a solid 25 minutes for food and there's very little table space to actually sit down and eat. Luckily that wasn't an issue for me, but i'm sure it is around lunch time. One of the Cast Members working at Woody's Lunch Box mentioned that on opening day, they had 5 hour long lines just to get food out of that little shack.

Entertainment
The only land entertainment is two separate shows that the Green Army Men perform. I've yet to properly see either.

Overall
The land adds fun family-oriented experiences to DHS, however, given the allotment of land used, you can't help but feel like there could've been some better choices made to put the land to use at it's fullest potential. One more ride would've really helped out and it feels like they missed out on a blatant opportunity to have a Character Dining experience that likely would've been incredibly popular. The land shines at night as the area lights up, something that I think the land does better than Pandora - a land that advertised itself on coming to see it at night. The land also provides a unique view of the fireworks, as the firework launchpad is right behind the land and across the street.

As @Brian G. put it, the land is "Fine". It's nothing fancy, nothing i'd go planning trips around. It looks good and the rides are fun. There's always going to be that looming thought of what they could've done here, however.

 

[Brian G.]

After thinking about it for a couple days- Toy Story Land is a missed opportunity that still manages to be somewhat successful.

First things first; this land is not meant to be the "star" but as a complementary experience. The problem is that Hollywood Studios is starving for something so desperately, anything new was automatically going to need to fill that Star role. I don't know if it was ideal to have Toy Story Land seem like one - but it's a problem Disney walked into themselves.

Truthfully, most of the problems I have with Toy Story Land are beneath the surface. As such, some of the complaints I have will go overlooked by the GP. The land is cute. Kids will love it, parents will be fine with it - so it'll be a winner in the long run.

Let's kick it off with, what I feel, is one of Disney's biggest missed opportunities. Pixar, let alone Toy Story, is one of Disney's anchor IP's. Somehow, Disney has plugged in Toy Story at several other Disney parks very lazily. Specifically, at Disney World, we have 4 Toy Story-based attractions now, with 2 of them being video game/shooter type (one is available on the Wii, too). One of the most obvious ways to bring Toy Story to life is Pizza Planet, yet we still don't have one (we'll get to that later).

As far as the rides - Slinky Dog Dash is fun. It's very smooth and does pack some sneaky speed and thrills. I do wish there was a bit more show scenes/scenery, as was shown in the original artwork. The loss of the ditches are fine, but the scenes involving Dr. Porkchop and the Green Army Men near the end would've added something more to this ride.

Alien Swirling Saucers are fine. Riding it at night seems a lot better with all the lights. That's about all that needs to be said about that...

The themeing of the land is very fun, colorful, and does have a charm to it. Toy Story Mania's new entrance is kinda underwhelming but other than that - the land as a whole is nice. The land does stand out at night with some spectacular lighting packages. Slinky Dog features a wonderful element of having lights follow the Slinky Dog train throughout its journey on the track. As stated before, the Saucers experience is a lot better at night.

I grabbed lunch at Woody's Lunch Box and enjoyed the Monte Cristo with a "Grown Up Lemonade" (alcoholic cherry lemonade). The Lunch Box is probably one of the best quick-service spots Disney has, especially since it's not another burger joint. My biggest gripe is that all the seats are all outside and somewhat limited, which leads me to......

Finger of shame at Disney for not providing any sort of shade. The fact that there is no place to escape the elements at all in this land is something that is completely inexcusable. During my time there, it was brutally hot - with storms threatening throughout the afternoon. Unless you're waiting inside a queue for the rides, you're exposed to it. The only area that offered A/C is inside Toy Story Mania's queue. I had to make my way out to One Man's Dream for shelter at one point. For the next break, I ended up at Backlot Express to enjoy a drink so I can sit down & cool off.

This is where the cuts are felt the most.

A sit-down restaurant or at least a better-dedicated area for food/drink would've come in handy. Pizza Planet is the obvious choice, but any kind of anything would be preferred at this point. The shops they had originally planned would also have been very beneficial, especially since it would offer a dedicated shop in the land instead of down Sunset Blvd, ways away from the land. It also would have offered some of that shade the land is lacking.

The layout of the land is also sorta awkward. Maybe it's a temporary issue since it's a dead-end until Star Wars opens? We'll see.

Overall, I did find the land to be nice - but I think it needed to be more than just "passable". Budget cuts are a necessary evil, but the cuts made to Toy Story Land prevented it from being just a bit more special.

BUT on what we did end up with... it is fun, which ultimately is all it needs to be, especially as it eventually compliments the A-list land next door that's just over a year away from opening.

 

[rhino4evr]

I think this land needs to be compared next to the Big Top Circus in Magic Kingdom. It's for a similar audience with similar rides (a spinner and a coaster). On that level, I'd say the theming is superior, however the lack of gift shop, meet and greet, and indoor restaurant makes it feel a little less "complete" as a "land". I question Disney for cutting a gift shop or sit down restaurant, which would have paid for itself in a year.

In 5 years, once all the other new attractions are open. This area will be seen as a nice "pit stop" in the park. I just don't see the crowds flocking to this like they do to Pandora or the up and coming SWL.

 

[Disneyhead]

This is the first "cheap" land that Disney has created that I consider "Disney Quality".

Chester and Hester's being the worst. The other TSLs and Flik's Fun Faire being slightly better. But none of those felt worthy of being in a "Disney Park".

I personally like well themed flats and visible steel in my theme parks and I think Disney has done a great job here at making quality additions while pushing the envelope of acceptability.

 

[Nick]

I think this land needs to be compared next to the Big Top Circus in Magic Kingdom. It's for a similar audience with similar rides (a spinner and a coaster). On that level, I'd say the theming is superior, however the lack of gift shop, meet and greet, and indoor restaurant makes it feel a little less "complete" as a "land". I question Disney for cutting a gift shop or sit down restaurant, which would have paid for itself in a year.

In 5 years, once all the other new attractions are open. This area will be seen as a nice "pit stop" in the park. I just don't see the crowds flocking to this like they do to Pandora or the up and coming SWL.

Honestly, the crowds already aren’t flocking to it like Pandora. In the early morning and basically anytime 5pm or later, the land is very enjoyable as waits have been minimal during those times already.

I think that sort of affected my review versus Brian’s a bit as my only *true* experience of the land was from 7-11pm and had minimal waits for all. I actually almost was able to complete the entire park’s attraction roster in that time span.

Definitely agree it is dumbfounding they didn’t put a Charachter meal in here. If they ever expand the land, I’d be surprised if that wasn’t what they do. There’s space near the entrance. Limited, but with creative use, they could make it work.

 

[Jones14]

Here’s my take:

During the day, the somewhat sporadic placement of the theming elements is distracting. Everything tries to compete equally for your attention, and the layout, like New Fantasyland, is not complementary to a single central element (such as Gringotts in Diagon Alley or the Tower of Terror), but also fails to offer a clear path to uncover new elements as you go (Adventureland, Hogsmeade). The “reveals” of the land are the Saucers and the restrooms when it should’ve been the coaster and Toy Story Mania.

At night, it fares better, as the lighting package on the coaster makes it stand out, pulling you around to the left until you see the Saucers, which also has a neat look at night. Also, smaller elements aren’t as in your face because they’re not illuminated, so the land feels more deliberate in design. The high point for both is that the land has a lot of kinetic energy, and the Toy Story soundtrack is used well throughout the area.

Ridewise, the land is solid. Saucers was unimpressive, but we rode during the day, and I have never been a person who enjoys the teacups, Dumbo, etc., so I knew going in that this wasn’t aimed at me. If you like those sorts of rides, it’s worth a ride, but everyone in our group agreed that it’s completely skippable.

Mania remains solid, and the theming in the queue is up a notch from what it was before. I didn’t feel that the exit was particularly long, but we rode on the third track, so maybe the walk was longer for the original tracks. It had some cute themed elements, and it was nice to have a relatively peaceful area to walk through before returning to the chaos of the land.

Slinky was the surprise for all of us. It really doesn’t look like much, but the layout is pure fun. I don’t really have much to say other than that we all got off delighted at how much fun we had. For what it tries to be (a D ticket family ride), it succeeds on pretty much every level. There could definitely be more theming on the back end, although I have to admit that everyone’s eyes slid right over the green shed and were glued to Star Wars Land in the distance.

Overall, no one should plan a vacation around seeing the land, but you shouldn’t leave the park without riding Slinky when you get there.

 

[fallingends]

I was there this past Friday, it was way better then I was expecting. Incredibly detailed to the land and everything about it I really enjoyed, at night is when it really come alive and added so much to the land with lights and colors. Didn’t get chance at aliens, but i rode slinky dog dash at night and it was really really great with expecting it to be really tame and noting really too it with really no speed or thrills, it was a lot of fun and it had really nice speed to it and thrills where really great. Great addition to Hollywood Studios, which really needed it.

 

[Nick]

After visiting the land two times and having experienced everything from the Land as it transforms from day to night, the rides, food and the (limited) entertainment, here's my comprehensive review of the land.

Land theming/atmosphere
The land is very lush, colorful and vibrant at night with a nice view of the DHS fireworks to boot. I'm not sure how much the land succeeds on making us feel like toys as much as just being surrounded by over-sized toys. Either way, the land looks good and the use of the backyard fence to block out views of the large parking structure just beyond it works well. The land does have some downfalls though. The lack of any indoor spaces is an issue and the back half of Slinky Dog leaves much to be desired thematically (your main view is of a Back of House support building), but this isn't something that most of you didn't already know.

Unlike say, Pandora, which to me feels dead most of the time (dead in the sense that there's no kinetic energy), TSL delivers two rides that really make the land feel alive and, when the Green Army Men are performing, that adds a little extra to the land as well.

Rides
Alien Swirling Saucers - Posted wait time 45 minutes, waited 30. A clone of the Mater's Junkyard Jamboree ride system, this ride is a fun addition to the park, but definitely not worth waiting that long for. 30 minute wait was tolerable and went by quickly as we were constantly moving, but i'd even go as far as to say 20 minutes maximum is really the most one should wait for it once you've experienced it once (that was the only reason I got in at a 45 minute line - just wanted to do it once). I will note that the queue did have fans, but they weren't blowing hard enough to really make a difference. I don't even want to imagine what it feels like during the heat of the day.

Slinky Dog Dash - Rode the ride twice. Both time the wait time was posted at 145 minutes as I said in the general discussion thread. I waited 35 minutes the first ride and 27 minutes the second time. My sister, 10 y/o, really enjoyed the ride and was the reason we went a second time. As for my personal opinion, maybe I just had low expectations, but the ride did surprise me a bit. It goes faster than it looks and it has a certain kick to it in parts that's unsuspecting.

However, it did not feel longer than SDMT like many have said. Wheezy at the end of the ride is a nice touch. Overall it's a fun coaster and provides an alternative for those not willing/not tall enough to ride RNRC. Slinky also had fans in it's queue and once again, none of theme helped actually make it feel cooler, save for portable fans right at the load platform that were blasting.

Toy Story Mania - Obviously not a new ride, but it is part of the land. I did FP on the ride today and saw the "theming" or lack-thereof upon the entry into the FP queue. Certainly stands out in a land that - for the most part - tries it's best to immerse you into Andy's backyard and that whole story. As I understand it, the building that we enter is themed like a cardboard box that Andy would've used I guess (this is carried out throughout many parts of the land), but it feels too bland and the propped open push-doors make it feel temporary.

Anyway, with DCA's version reopening not long ago, it would've been nice to at least get some new games with the land opening.

Food
Ate at Woody's Lunch box tonight. I got the "Totchos" and also was able to sample both items on the kids menu as well (they messed up the order so I got one of the meals free). The Totchos portion size is pretty decent. I thought that all of the different flavors blended together very well and the dish was filling. I also got the three cheese blend grilled cheese. Overall it's fine, but I thought it was a bit too cheesy.

I waited probably a solid 25 minutes for food and there's very little table space to actually sit down and eat. Luckily that wasn't an issue for me, but i'm sure it is around lunch time. One of the Cast Members working at Woody's Lunch Box mentioned that on opening day, they had 5 hour long lines just to get food out of that little shack.

Entertainment
The only land entertainment is two separate shows that the Green Army Men perform. I've yet to properly see either.

Overall
The land adds fun family-oriented experiences to DHS, however, given the allotment of land used, you can't help but feel like there could've been some better choices made to put the land to use at it's fullest potential. One more ride would've really helped out and it feels like they missed out on a blatant opportunity to have a Character Dining experience that likely would've been incredibly popular. The land shines at night as the area lights up, something that I think the land does better than Pandora - a land that advertised itself on coming to see it at night. The land also provides a unique view of the fireworks, as the firework launchpad is right behind the land and across the street.

As @Brian G. put it, the land is "Fine". It's nothing fancy, nothing i'd go planning trips around. It looks good and the rides are fun. There's always going to be that looming thought of what they could've done here, however.

A year later....

Still the same land, but wait times have certainly become much more manageable and we do already know of an expansion to the land. I feel it’s worth mentioning that Bo Peep looks just like she should in person and not like she’s out of some horror movie

On my trip today where I rode all three rides (within about a 2.5 hour period of time) and ate at Woody’s Lunch Box, M&G's are everywhere as soon as you enter the land (Buzz, Woody, Bo Peep) and the Green Army Men doing a drum march through the land fairly often made it feel much more alive than the land felt at open last year. Combine that with Slinky on the tracks and the Saucers spinning and it makes for a land the really felt like there was a lot going on today and is in constant motion.

They’ve also added umbrellas over every bench in the land and more tables at Lunch Box. Totchos remain a nice treat and I’m not sure if this is news or not... but Disney is now allowing refills on all fountain sodas purchased. Guess they have to try and justify that $4 price tag somehow.

Riding Slinky after Hagrid yesterday definitely makes the ride feel extremely underwhelming (although they obviously aren’t a direct 1:1 comparison), but it’s still a fun little ride. Once SW:GE opens, this land will really be a nice side attraction, which is what it can thrive as. It’s no main attraction though.

 

[UNIrd]

I’m not sure if this is news or not... but Disney is now allowing refills on all fountain sodas purchased. Guess they have to try and justify that $4 price tag somehow..

Esqueeze me? Since when?

 

[Nick]

Esqueeze me? Since when?

Since the last two times i've been to the parks?

Honestly i'm not sure, but I would guess probably when they last raised the price. The $4 mark ($5 for bottled soda) is a rough one. At both Cosmic Rays and Woody's Lunch Box I was able to get refills, I just had to go up and ask them. I'd make sure to keep your receipt on you though.