Volcano Bay Construction & Preview Discussion

[Mad Dog]

While I agree that Typhoons aesthetic is more visually pleasing by hiding the support structures... one could argue that by exposing them (as Volcano Bay has) the perceived sense of danger and thrill is heightend as you see the height and scope of the slides. That is much more in-line with Universals "thrill" audience and park design approach.

Welcome to the OU Forums.

 

[Frank Drackman]

Maybe my view of the system is skewed as i'm local and all of my information has been set up without needing change since March 2013. We do stay on-site from time to time as we have DVC (we use DVC to go to DL and Hawaii more though) so I have experienced the hotel side of things and it's mostly been positive.

The biggest negative I can say is that we still have to show our AP in order to get a discount rather than just linking it to our magic band. I had a friend who worked merch at DAK who explained to me that the reason Disney had them do that is because anyone can steal a Magic Band so they need to verify your identity, but I still feel like that's just excuses.

I really am not trying to ding WDW, the only aspect I did not like the last time I was there (in regards to the new tech pre magic bands) was that I had to sign even though I had to use a pin as well....that was new to me at that time.

I'm sure MBs are a great experience, I just have not experienced them myself.

Magic Bands vs TapuTapu is pretty trivial. TapuTapu can do more. But Disney isn't and wasn't concerned with how efficient FP+ was w/ the Magic Band nearly as much as they were concerned with crowd sourcing. Which, in turn, allows them to adjust staffing, ride ops, etc and make more money than they could have dreamed by reducing operating costs.

Park admission, dining, payment, room key, FP+, park-wide Wifi infrastructure, etc, etc- while it seems like a nice convenience was done so they can keep tabs on you in one concise program. Tiered pricing with efficient labor/ride allocation is leaps and bounds more advanced than Universal's. It's not even close. Crowds can "appear" less busy- because there are less people- yet wait times remain the same because they are able to adjust not only in real-time but with weeks of preparation.

The "business" aspect of FP/MM+ was brilliant. It seemed dumb at the time to spend a billion plus- one that people argued should have been spent on new rides- but it was never about "increasing crowds". It was always about getting more money from people "efficiently"- all while reducing operating costs. They've more than recouped their billion and are laughing all the way to the bank now.


As for TapuTapu- it's strictly a convenience factor for now. Long-term, I'd expect Universal to follow in Disney's footsteps as it has proven very successful financially.

I get all this, but UNI could get intelligence data from the vendor they are uses without building 100% in house...that is still the only aspect I would question WDW on is why they needed to reinvent the wheel...I personally think the UNI process of using a vendor for the NFC type stuff and then go in house with the data that the system is capable of collecting.

 

[quinnmac000]

I expect Tapu Tapu to be tied into another NBC inhouse ad selling program which they are trying to implement as well in the parks. Comcast is all about synergy so don't be surprised if they evolve to allow you to watch NBC shows and Universal movies while you are lounging.

 

[JoeCamel]

I expect Tapu Tapu to be tied into another NBC inhouse ad selling program which they are trying to implement as well in the parks. Comcast is all about synergy so don't be surprised if they evolve to allow you to watch NBC shows and Universal movies while you are lounging.

Hope its a better screen, my eyes are old

 

[12th Man]

Some beautiful drone shots!

 

[epcyclopedia]

I don't get why the drone people are obsessed with the blue and green slide combo - they always focus on it.

The poor green and orange one gets ignored.

 

[Mad Dog]

I don't get why the drone people are obsessed with the blue and green slide combo - they always focus on it.

The poor green and orange one gets ignored.

Even drones discriminate, from the look of things.

 

[UNIrd]

This spurred my thinking:

I was perusing through Bioreconstruct's page and saw some of typhoon lagoon's refurb pics floating around. It reminded me of why I love that water park. In contrast to Volcano Bae, TL built their slides (with the exception of CrushnGusher) into the landscape. Very rarely do you see supports or the like...

For me, it blends reality with the fantasy. It makes it a smooth connection with believing what you're seeing. Almost as if the slides are an extension of the land itself.

I'm stoked for VB. However, I resonate with some who said the slide layouts look...basic. I will ride it all and withhold judgment until I do, but I can't say that my expectations are lower.

Thoughts?

I agree with you on Typhoon Lagoon, but it's also hard to compare a water park from nearly 30 years ago with one from today. Due to their heights, we'd need a park full of mountains to hide the slides from plain view.

I definitely don't mind seeing slides at a water park, the same way I don't mind seeing skyscrapers in New York. It's just part of the sightlines.

 

[Cheezbat]

This spurred my thinking:

I was perusing through Bioreconstruct's page and saw some of typhoon lagoon's refurb pics floating around. It reminded me of why I love that water park. In contrast to Volcano Bae, TL built their slides (with the exception of CrushnGusher) into the landscape. Very rarely do you see supports or the like...

For me, it blends reality with the fantasy. It makes it a smooth connection with believing what you're seeing. Almost as if the slides are an extension of the land itself.

I'm stoked for VB. However, I resonate with some who said the slide layouts look...basic. I will ride it all and withhold judgment until I do, but I can't say that my expectations are lower.

Thoughts?

I will remind you of this: ALL of the slides built into the mountain structure of Typhoon were built when the park opened.
Crush N Gusher and now MissAdventure Falls both stray away from being built into landscaping structures. I'm sure every attraction added from here on in will also be free standing.

 

[darkridelover]

I will remind you of this: ALL of the slides built into the mountain structure of Typhoon were built when the park opened.
Crush N Gusher and now MissAdventure Falls both stray away from being built into landscaping structures. I'm sure every attraction added from here on in will also be free standing.

Exactly, you can see the supports on Crushin' Gusher and MissAdventure Falls.

 

[Joel]

got some good shots of the fountains that will be used for the eruption..





i think i count 6 different nozzles here, two large diameter towards the front where the water will fall, 3 medium diameter nozzles, and one smaller one.

 

[Teebin]

I wonder if those are super shooters like those used at the Bellagio...

 

[Dan B]

Latest Midway Mayhem Video Update:

 

[rcoasterdude]

In the second to last of those pictures zoom in on the bottom left corner. There's a weird rock thing that makes it look like a big rock is balancing on a rock point

 

[Evan]

I really love the look of this park. My only concern is that they made no berm of any sort. I hope they can really create one with a dense layer of foliage...

 

[Scott W.]

In the second to last of those pictures zoom in on the bottom left corner. There's a weird rock thing that makes it look like a big rock is balancing on a rock point

Good eye!

got some good shots of the fountains that will be used for the eruption..

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i think i count 6 different nozzles here, two large diameter towards the front where the water will fall, 3 medium diameter nozzles, and one smaller one.

View attachment 3795

It's kind of amazing, how clean the ground looks between the water coaster tracks in the last photo.

 

[Blue]

Typhoon Lagoon is definitely greatly themed but most of the slides are too tame. I'd rather have something like Crush 'n' Gusher over something like Mayday Falls any day.

 

[Scott W.]

Typhoon Lagoon is definitely greatly themed but most of the slides are too tame. I'd rather have something like Crush 'n' Gusher over something like Mayday Falls any day.

TL is a great park but it feels old. The difference between concrete and plastic in the construction of water parks was a huge leap forward. TL is almost 28 years old and BB is almost 22 years old but BB feels lightyears ahead.

 

[pl6pilgrim]

Bioreconstruct is currently posting some great aerials on Twitter. Landscaping seems to have had a rocket up the ass as significant amount has been done over the last couple of days.

 

[pl6pilgrim]

Bottom tweet looks like South lazy river had final coating and again plenty of landscaping.



Plenty more scaffolding down.



Scaffolding coming down from drop level/waterfall. Hopefully we see some more testing of water from Krakatau again soon.



The progress in these overall aerials is phenomenal.