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View Full Version : Is DLR missing out by not celebrating Halloween



malin
09-28-2003, 02:32 PM
Hi I have just recently got back from Disneyland Resort Paris,Where the park is busy getting ready for its Halloween event.And all the decorations looked great.Main Street is being transformed into Spooky Street.With Pumpkins painting the buildings orange.

There is a massive ghost like creature which is chained to the Mark Twain.Plus the Disney Princess Parade is being taken over by the Disney Villians.Find out more by clicking the link below

http://disneylandparis.com/uk/halloween2003/index2.htm

You have to admit it looks very impressive.And is usually a big sucess for the Paris park each year.And I can't understand why DL doesn't try something like this.Yeah I know Knotts and Universal are the kings when it comes to Halloween.But I think Disney should try and give the parks a run for there money by adding there own Halloween celebrations each year.I think it could do really well.

malin
09-28-2003, 02:42 PM
Hey I have just found some photos

http://joel.serre.online.fr/dlp/20030927/

The Halloween stuff looks so cool.And I think DLR is missing out big time here.

karl
09-28-2003, 03:19 PM
A few years back at Disneyland...

...the Christmas Tree in Town Square was decorated and lighted on Halloween night. Scariest thing I have ever seen on October 31.

To be fair tho, a few years before that they did have some special after-hours events for guests, around the same era that had AP Parties.

And of course the Cast Members have some events for their families.

But Disneyland has never really owned Halloween like Knotts has.

CarlieB
09-28-2003, 03:52 PM
That does look very cool - thanks for posting the links:)

9oldmen
09-28-2003, 07:11 PM
To be fair tho, a few years before that they did have some special after-hours events for guests, around the same era that had AP Parties.

They used to do some event called "Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party" or something like that, and something that might have been just for cast members callled "Little Monsters on Main Street" or something.

And don't forget that "little" thing called "Haunted Mansion Holiday", which is un-like anything at any other theme park, Disney or otherwise, and gets more guests on "Mansion" than any other time of year.(I am guessing about that last part).

Morrigoon
09-28-2003, 07:15 PM
Definitely missing out. How many parents would SO prefer to take their kids to the park rather than around their neighborhoods? Should be a special after hours event in the west side of the park with trick or treating for the kiddies, entertainment for them, entertainment for the grownups (costumed dance party!), the usual pins and junk, and villains. I'd go.

Cadaverous Pallor
09-28-2003, 07:34 PM
Yes! I wish they would do more for Halloween at Disneyland. Even the Nightmare Mansion overlay is really a Christmas thing, not a Halloween thing, which bothers me to no end.

Bring on Halloween at the DLR! I don't care how.

innerSpaceman
09-28-2003, 08:06 PM
Much as I'd looooove to have our Disneyland do Halloween a tenth as good as they do in France, I can't begrudge EuroDisneyland the unique nitch they've found amongst the Disney parks to celebrate this holiday so elaborately.

Cynically, there are two reasons why Anaheim might not want to get more involved with Halloween: a) Not wanting to attract the kind of rambunctious teenage crowd that attend Halloween events at Knott's, Universal, et al.; and - b) Why spend money to make over the park when simply making over one attraction (Haunted Mansion) pulls in pretty much the max attendance that the park can handle anway?

Artistically, there is also a good reason why not to try this at the real Disneyland: It pulls Main Street USA and Frontierland far more out of theme than Christmas decorations do. (Main Street actually had Christmas at the turn of the century, but never became "Spooky Street" at Halloween.) The stuff they do in Paris is pretty over-the-top: frozen-in-place Pumpkin Men painters all over Main Street, the Mark Twain covered in spider webs, and a 30-foot-tall mummy pulling the Molly Brown around the river.

On the other hand, Disneyland did do a couple of years of "Mickey Mouse's Halloween Treat" in its own, somewhat more subdued style. These were special event evenings that did transform the park to a degree, but did not affect the daily operations or day guests' experiences. Roudy bands of teenagers did not appear. The events were terrifically popular. Who knows why they were discontinued?


Oh wait, we we all know why.

The short answer is that the park would have more Halloween stuff if Disneyland just plain didn't suk for the past few years.

Cadaverous Pallor
09-28-2003, 08:31 PM
Originally posted by innerSpaceman
Artistically, there is also a good reason why not to try this at the real Disneyland: It pulls Main Street USA and Frontierland far more out of theme than Christmas decorations do. (Main Street actually had Christmas at the turn of the century, but never became "Spooky Street" at Halloween.) I must say here that I personally believe that having Christmas decorations during November and January is out of theme, and entirely inappropriate. IMHO. Plus, having Small World go Christmasy is also out of theme, and is pretty much an insult to all the other cultures housed therein, besides. It's supposed to be a ride about diversity, for crying out loud! :rolleyes:

If these things are "ok", then Halloween decorations park-wide should be ok.

I agree with your last sentence, though. :)

MonorailMan
09-28-2003, 09:47 PM
Originally posted by Cadaverous Pallor
I agree with your last sentence, though. :)

While CP has a good point, sometime, theme has to be put on the back burner, for well fun!

I agree with your last sentence, though. :)

Nephythys
09-29-2003, 06:19 AM
Originally posted by Cadaverous Pallor
I must say here that I personally believe that having Christmas decorations during November and January is out of theme, and entirely inappropriate. IMHO. Plus, having Small World go Christmasy is also out of theme, and is pretty much an insult to all the other cultures housed therein, besides. It's supposed to be a ride about diversity, for crying out loud! :rolleyes:

If these things are "ok", then Halloween decorations park-wide should be ok.

I agree with your last sentence, though. :)

I don't agree that decorating Small World in Christmas lights is at all out of theme. First off, the lights are secular. You can't ascribe a religious preference to the lights, they are simply pretty twinkling lights.
Secondly, many more people celebrate the Christmas holiday than don't, and even those who do not can appreciate the sight of Small World in the pretty twinkling lights.
Given that DL is here in America and most of us do celebrate Christmas, it is appropriate for our area.
I looked at the pics of the Halloween event in Paris, I think it looks incredible. It would be nice to have something like that here. I would certainly want to go. Although I find that Haunted Mansion Holiday is a big draw too.

justagrrl
09-29-2003, 07:21 AM
The ghost pulling the Mark Twain is FABULOUS!

hbquikcomjamesl
09-29-2003, 07:53 AM
Personally, I've never held with the idea of putting up Christmas decorations prior to the First Sunday of Advent. Nor with taking them down before Epiphany. No matter how much you might secularize Christmas, it's still a religious holiday, and the period when we decorate for it should be based on the liturgical seasons, not based on Madison Avenue.

I also find the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay at HM to be highly overrated.

As to Halloween decorations, I find the idea a bit silly.

MammaSilva
09-29-2003, 08:22 AM
Not that Disney will do it, but I really see them missing the boat on this as a way to drag some butts into DCA.... they said they wanted that park to be 'edgy' more teenager/young adult demographic... what better way than to do the whole Halloween thing over there, the layout of the park actually lends itself to the idea so well.. they could turn the Hollywood backlot into a totally themed area and with empty spaces that are already available they could do either walk thru haunted houses/mazes (not to be confused with the classic HM across the way) atmosphere talent walking around and if they didn't want to go park wide that particular area is already 'isolated' from the rest of the park so that if they 'only' themed the Hollywood backlot it wouldn't look out of place. Especially next year with the ToT due to open.

Mark Goldhaber
09-29-2003, 09:35 AM
Kind of like a "Hollyween Backlot"? ;) :D

malin
09-29-2003, 01:10 PM
How about a camp fire and ghost storys at Redwood Creek Challenge Trail.The ideas are endless.

And I think a lot of families would perfer to take there kids to DL rather then Knotts or Universal.

Halloween at DL has so much potential.Merchadise events,arts and crafts new shows and more.I hope TDA one day realise just how much money there loosing by not adding this event.Maybe Jay Rasulo former CEO of Disneyland Resort Paris and now presidents of Disney theme parks who has experience first hand how much of a great addition the Halloween celebrations can be,will pitch this idea to his team in Anaheim.Lets hope anyway.

yeo_foxe
09-29-2003, 01:10 PM
Originally posted by innerSpaceman
Cynically, there are two reasons why Anaheim might not want to get more involved with Halloween: a) Not wanting to attract the kind of rambunctious teenage crowd

I've got friends who work haunt.

Massive stupidity happens with patrons who think it's funny to beat up the monsters to impress their girlfriends....

...or get angry because said idiot gets scared and take their stupidity out on the scarers....

JazzBaby
09-29-2003, 01:12 PM
RE: Disneyland at Halloween...

I know when I was working the studio the general idea was that DL went all out at Christmas but decided to be gracious in defeat to Knott's at Halloween.

MammaSilva
09-29-2003, 01:17 PM
Well they may have 'graciously' considered defeat.. but I"m thinking someone in the TDA building better start looking hard at ways to actually make "more" people want to visit DCA... it would be easy to set up different 'levels' of 'scary' in that park.. Hollyween backlot.. teens/adults... Redwood creek.. little ones..

the potential is unreal....