Saturday, August 20, 2011

Ranting and Raving: The Spinning Spinners of Magic Kingdom


Somehow I find myself thinking about the different attractions that are in each Disney World park, and the thing that came to mind today and that really seemed to get at me was the round-a-bout spinning attractions that Magic Kingdom has. It occurred to me that this park wants guests to have jumbled heads by the time they exit the turnstiles at night. Consider this, as a classic spinner attraction Magic Kingdom has three: Dumbo the Flying Elephant, the Astro Orbiter, and the Magic Carpets of Aladdin. In the classic carousel there is Prince Charming's Regal Carrousel (or whatever they decided to change it to now) and  The Mad Tea Party. Also, but not in the category of the others is the famous Carousel of Progress. Wow, and I thought it wasn't that bad. Who forgot to remind Disney that differentiation was a good thing.


Though each spinner attraction has a different theme, they are generally the same attraction. The magic carpets are the same as Dumbo and the Astro Orbter in design. They spin round and round and go up and down. The only difference is that tone is themed after the Buck Rogers space ships and the other two are based off of Disney films. It does not make much of sense to have this many attractions with the same basic concept in one park. Think of the other three parks. Can you name a spinning attraction in them?


Now the rant is not really meant for the original two attractions that were in the park, but saved for the most recent Spinner attraction the Magic Carpets. What exactly was the logic in dropping this attraction in the middle of Adventureland. It seems to me and many of the people that I have talked to that this attraction has not only bottled up that main area of Adventureland, but it has ruined the original story of the land. Now we must deal with trying to prove that the Agrabah Bazaar area fits in with the theme of adventure. Where does it end. I understand that Aladdin was a huge success for the Disney company and thus they were trying to maximize the popularity by placing an attraction themed off of it in the parks somewhere, but this was not the place.

Considering this I think it is safe to say that we will not be seeing any new spinning rides in the Walt Disney World Resort, or at least the resort for that matter. Not unless they want to go the Six Flags route, and we all know that we do not want that.

1 comment:

  1. The magic carpet ride is handicapped accessible and can accommodate wheelchairs being attached to the ride. This opens up a lot of opportunities for people with disabilities to enjoy the magic that was denied to them due to the limitations of the traditional ride designs.

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