There was once a time when calling Disney and Universal direct competitors in Orlando felt outlandish. Both resorts struggled to draw visitors after the travel declines of 9/11, but Universal faced even greater challenges due to multiple ownership changes. It’s hard to build new rides when the money keeps coming from different sources. There was a huge attendance gap between Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando that showed few signs of getting smaller. We call this time BP, or “Before Potter”.
By purchasing the rights to the Harry Potter franchise and delivering the incredible Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Universal started a new era. Disney couldn’t ignore Universal and count on guests to stay in the bubble. Their move to acquire the rights to James Cameron’s Avatar did little to stem the rising tide. Universal didn’t rest on their laurels and threw down the gauntlet with Diagon Alley and the Hogwarts Express. By connecting their two parks and putting valuable commodities in both (including Simpsons and Transformers attractions), Universal created a true resort.
Given these conditions, it seemed obvious that Disney would quickly respond after buying the rights to Lucasfilm in October 2012. It’s been nearly three years, and we’ve seen little movement. Disney added New Fantasyland and is doing Pandora, but neither feels like it matches Universal’s moves. They’ve focused more on technical upgrades like the My Magic Plus system, including FastPass Plus. This approach raises questions on whether it’s fair to even compare Universal and Disney’s efforts in Orlando. Are they playing in completely different sandboxes?
The Disney Decade
Let’s journey back to a time that many Walt Disney World fans cite as the glory days. In 1990, Chairman and CEO Michael Eisner revealed ambitious plans that he called “The Disney Decade”. The resort’s expansion during the next 10 years included a lot more hotel rooms, a fourth park in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and many new attractions. The Disney/MGM Studios had just opened a year earlier, and Typhoon Lagoon and Pleasure Island were also brand new. The massive site that we know today looked very different before the ‘90s additions. There were new things to see every year.
During the ‘90s, Eisner treated Walt Disney World like a growth resort and believed there was untapped potential. He had plenty of land to work with and needed to upgrade the parks to justify additional hotel rooms. Here’s a quick list of some attractions that came into being in the ‘90s:
- Splash Mountain – 1992
- Voyage of the Little Mermaid – 1992
- Legend of the Lion King – 1994
- Honey, I Shrunk the Audience – 1994
- The Timekeeper – 1994
- Innoventions – 1994
- The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror – 1994
- ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter – 1995
- Ellen’s Energy Adventure – 1996
- The Barnstormer – 1996
- Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin – 1998
- The Enchanted Tiki Room (Under New Management) – 1998
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh – 1999
- Illuminations: Reflections of Earth – 1999
- Journey into YOUR Imagination – 1999
- Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster – 1999
- Test Track – 1999
Admittedly, some of these attractions were not impressive and didn’t survive. However, it’s hard to argue with this much output. Some of the resort’s most popular rides were built during this time period. In 1998, Disney’s Animal Kingdom expanded the resort even further and brought a very different approach to the theme park. It was an amazing time to visit Walt Disney World, and the same rampant growth hasn’t been seen in recent years. Disney has added rides but treats the parks more like mature properties. This is especially true at EPCOT and the Hollywood Studios, which enjoyed considerable expansion during this time.
Universal’s Recent Growth
There are definite similarities between Disney World’s moves in the ‘90s and the current expansion at Universal. Comcast entered the picture in 2009 and purchased the remaining share of ownership from GE in early 2013. It feels like they’re just at the beginning of a rapid expansion period. Unlike Disney, they’ve chosen to invest in attractions to increase attendance. The Harry Potter lands have proven that spending large sums of money to build groundbreaking attractions can draw crowds.
Here’s a summary of recent additions and what’s officially announced for the future:
- The Simpsons Ride – 2008
- Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit – 2009
- The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – 2010
- Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem – 2012
- Transformers: The Ride – 2013
- Diagon Alley and Hogwarts Express – 2014
- Skull Island: Reign of Kong – 2016
- Volcano Bay – 2017
This list just focuses on Orlando and doesn’t include upcoming Harry Potter lands in Hollywood and Tokyo plus the new Fast & Furious: Supercharged addition to the tour in California. Universal also secured a deal with Nintendo this year to bring attractions based on their games and characters to the parks. On their second-quarter earnings call on July 23, Comcast announced that theme park revenue was up 25.7%. They consider the parks a growth area for the next 20 years, which is a stunning number. Plenty of other rumors are flying, and it’s an exciting time for the Universal resorts.
Different Approaches to The Parks
This rivalry is fascinating because Disney and Universal are following such variant paths. Universal has the benefit of a more confined resort with a manageable infrastructure. The expenditures just to keep Walt Disney World running are massive. Investing serious capital into all four parks (plus water parks, hotels, and Downtown Disney) is difficult. Disney has also struggled to implement a complicated IT system that must run flawlessly. They’ve closed less popular attractions and set up a cruise-line model of reserved experiences.
Universal is counting on new attractions and can move differently than Disney. They’ve replaced almost every opening-day attraction from Universal Studios and don’t have a legacy to uphold. Removing Jaws angered some fans, but it’s hard to complain about Diagon Alley. They’re willing to risk alienating a few visitors because others will come for Harry Potter and other top properties. Disney is following a similar model with Frozen Ever After and will likely reap the benefits. There’s still a question if they’re willing to go all in with a series of innovative attractions.
Another challenge is the length of time to design and build new attractions. It’s unclear why it takes Disney so much longer to move, though I expect part of the reason is size. It takes leaders at the top to set firm deadlines and push everyone to meet them. The original EPCOT Center was built on a crazy deadline, and stories about its final construction days are incredible. This was also true of the original Disneyland. I don’t expect Disney to move at that pace again, but they must find a way to complete projects faster or risk losing guests to Universal.
The Shanghai Disneyland Question
This is hardly a linear discussion, and one reason is Shanghai Disneyland. Details released earlier this month reminded us how creative Disney can be when they have the will and resources at their disposal. This is hardly a cookie-cutter park and includes ride concepts that we’ve never seen from Disney. If you look at the Disney parks on the whole, Shanghai compensates for the frustrations of fans about lack of new attractions. The catch is that few can make the trip to experience them.
Disney is also doing a massive expansion in Tokyo and finally giving some attention to issues in Paris. There is a lot happening at the parks around the world, but Florida remains quiet by comparison. In one sense, the popularity of Walt Disney World has become a crutch in terms of new development.
Why spend resources to fix outdated EPCOT rides when it still earns major profits? It’s easier to keep doing special events that draw locals than to spend millions on significant upgrades. New theaters at Soarin’ and Toy Story Mania will help with crowd management, but they won’t raise attendance. It’s the type of investment that you do for a mature business to make it more efficient.
A Bright Future for Disney and Universal
The silver lining for theme park fans is continued expansion in Orlando and around the country. Disney is moving slowly, but we know that Star Wars is coming to the Hollywood Studios. The Animal Kingdom additions are exciting, and the resort should transform significantly during the next 10 years. Universal’s commitment to their parks should push Disney to act more decisively. It may take longer than I would hope, but Disney takes its reputation as the leader seriously. They can only ride the Frozen train for so long, and Harry Potter has already converted some to Universal.
I also shouldn’t discount the growth that’s coming from other sources in Orlando. Sea World recently announced Mako, which should set a new standard for thrill rides in the area. Busch Gardens and Legoland continue to expand and give visitors even greater choices. Walt Disney World set the model, and it’s been exciting to watch competitors work hard to grab their own share of such a valuable prize.
When will the tipping point occur? It might come if a Universal park in the U.S. passed Disney in attendance. The biggest game changer may be Harry Potter in Hollywood, which could entice many locals to take a break from their regular trips to Disneyland. It’s a fascinating time to cover theme parks, and there’s no end in sight for this growing rivalry.
Sources: Universal versus Disney: The Unofficial Guide to American Theme Parks’ Greatest Rivalry by Sam Gennawey, Since the World Began: Walt Disney World – the First 25 Years by Jeff Kurtti
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Becky @ Disney in your Day says
Fascinating post. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if a Universal park surpassed Hollywood Studios in its current state. I get what you’re saying about comparing Disney in the 90’s and Universal now, but I think Universal is doing it better, honestly. You look at that Disney list and as you pointed out some of them were kinda lame rides – some of them were also easy re-dos of rides already there. Universal has not only done new attractions, but two new lands and a whole water park is coming. I just feel like Disney really needs to pick up the pace to keep up. They have the advantage in terms of building with Reedy Creek, so if they don’t get something Star Wars out relatively soon I think they’ll suffer. But at the end of the day I do think that the competition can only be a good thing for us, the consumers! Looking forward to the future.
Dan Heaton says
Thanks Becky. I’m fascinated by what Universal is trying to do with its resort. They have such a huge benefit with the confined space, so they can really focus on building the parks and adding resorts that are still close to them. I have a feeling this article may be out of date very soon, but I’m not 100% sure. Disney has been so cautious, and I understand that since they still get strong attendance. Even so, there has to be a tipping point down the road. It’s going to be interesting.
Peter A. Fidrych says
I also believe that Disney has seemed to have gotten lazy and are resting on their laurels.As much as my wife and I are huge Disney nuts we have started looking at Universal again.We went and stayed there for 5 nights about 3 years ago and loved the parks and really loved the resorts,we stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel and absolutely loved it.Why does it take Disney so long to come up with a new attraction? I really do miss the Eisner years when something new was always going up. We actually decided on Mexico this year instead of our annual Disney trip and may not return until 2016 or 17 depending on when the Avatar park will be open at the AK. We will be going to Universal sometime next year though.
Dan Heaton says
Peter, I think there are a few things at play with Disney’s slow movement. The first part is their focus on opening Shanghai and building up Hong Kong. Another factor is how Orlando continues to draw crowds without tons of new attractions. They’ve also been focused on My Magic Plus recently, which has been a challenge. The biggest reason is probably the way that Iger’s leadership looks at Orlando. They consider it a mature resort and are looking to find more profit from it. With all of that said, I’m still optimistic that we’ll see some amazing things there. It’s just going to take longer than we (and many other fans) would like.