Disneyland Resort vs. Walt Disney World

[David S.]

If Tokyo's Toontown were removed, where at Tokyo Disneyland would guests be able to find Mickey and get a picture with him at all, let alone one alone with him?

They would likely build another meet & greet location to meet Mickey, just like they did in Florida. While the Town Square meet and greet at MK has it's charms, to me it is no substitute for being able to explore Mickey and Minnie's Homes (which are walk-through attractions in their own right, even if you skip the Meet and Greets). So I agree with you that it would be sad for Tokyo to lose their Toontown, especially since they have the complete version with the downtown section and the Roger Rabbit dark ride.

Thanks for the info about Toontown possibly being endangered in TDL - I wasn't aware of it.

I'll admit WDW's Toontown Fair was rather weak and never intended to be permanent,

Well, there is no doubt that the first version - Mickey's Birthdayland - was not intended to be permanent.

However, as I said in my earlier post, I think the upgrade to Toontown Fair in 1996 at least basically put it on par with the "residential" portion of DL's Toontown, and the 2 Mouse Homes and the Barnstormer certainly felt like they were built to be as "permanent" as their comparable attractions in Anaheim. They were built to last and it could be argued that the upgrade to Toontown Fair certainly made the land more "permanent". I think the Imagineers of Toontown Fair likely did the best they could within the budget and parameters they were given. I certainly feel that the MK Toontown was very underrated as the amout of details, gags, backstory, placemaking, propping, and references to the classic shorts found throughout the land (especially in the Mouse Homes) was quite impressive.

And I do find it funny that the one thing most people cite as evidence of Toontown's "temporary" status - the tents, which were holdovers from the original Birthdayland - are STILL there in the "permanent" Circusland!

Also, Barnstormer has had a significant reduction in theming, animatronics, and lush greenery in it's new "permanent" Circusland version as compared to it's original Toontown version.

[Flanger-Hanger]

Oh, how about Animagique? Is that worth seeing as well? It doesn't seem nearly as inventive as Cinemagique, but I like the idea behind it.

Some people aren't so enthusiastic about Animagique, but I like it. It's fun and another attraction unique to that resort.

[Nala]

Just reading my diary and when we were in Disneyland in 1987, the park closed at 6:00 pm on a weekday. My times sure have changed. They also had the skyway and People Mover that we went on. My how times have changed. I remember how big a difference there was when we were at Disneyland in 2008 for Christmas. They were building Splash Mountain and Disneyland Railroad wasn't operating.

[Atlantica]

Just reading my diary and when we were in Disneyland in 1987, the park closed at 6:00 pm on a weekday.

Oh my gosh !! I wonder why so early ? Seems nuts to me know to think about leaving the park at 6.

[Nala]

Just reading my diary and when we were in Disneyland in 1987, the park closed at 6:00 pm on a weekday.

Oh my gosh !! I wonder why so early ? Seems nuts to me know to think about leaving the park at 6.

I know. They also didn't have fireworks or the Electrical Parade that September either. There was only one park and it was Disneyland not like today when it's known as Disneyland Park.

Another thing that's different now than in 1987 is how you book flights. Back in 1987, we just booked the flight and hotels and didn't book the tours or to get into Disneyland until we got to Anaheim. We just booked a trip to WDW in September and everything was booked with our travel agent except for food and souvenirs. Admission to where we want to go is already paid for.