Attractions

Normally, an attraction is tracked at four different stages:

1. Construction
2. Opening Day
3. Day-to-Day Operations
4. Extinction

Yes, WDW information sites track all four stages. You can find construction photos of new attractions and fans sites devoted to closed attractions.

To compare the attractions on various WDW information sites, not a single site covers all four areas. Some cover a stage better than others and I will try to highlight this in the article.

For the basis of comparison, I will use a recent addition to WDW, Expedition Everest. I will also start with Disney, so we can see what other sites have that Disney doesn't.

Before we start the comparison, WDW had a press release in late 2005 about the attraction, including a detailed description and "Fast Facts", which was copied into most of the sites that follow.


Top Attraction Sites

Disney
Disney is one of the few sites that didn't use any of its own press release information. The attraction page has 5 high-quality photos and a high-quality video, which I believe is the same video shown on TV commercials. The page also has a recommended attraction (American Idol Experience), Fun Facts (brief) and scrollable Quick Tips.

The page has a basic summary sounding a little like a commercial, but is not bad overall. The page also has a list of guest policies, location & category information, and a link to buy tickets. Icons are shown for Rider Swap, Pal Mickey, and Mobile Disabilities, but an icon appears to be missing for Fastpass. An interactive map is also available that highlights the location of the EE in the park. The map functionality does not work on an iPhone.

BEST FOR: At-home planning.

LACKING: Disney does not link to guest reviews. Disney's page takes the longest to load on a cell phone, taking 36 seconds to load on my Treo. It also takes about 40 seconds to load on an iPod Touch (iPhone) over Wifi. This is most likely due to all of the graphics shown on the page. Links to more media would be nice (photos/video/podcasts). An online store link with Expedition Everest merchandise/collectibles such as pins.

Magical Kingdoms
Magical Kingdoms is my favorite attraction page for day-to-day use. MK focuses on variety and has categories for almost anything you can think of. This is the attraction summary page that Disney should have.

The attraction Description and Tips & Fun Facts sections are shortened versions of the PR site with a few additions. MK also includes Child Swap, Pal Mickey and Disabilities, just like Disney does, but also includes icons for Fastpass, Single Rider Line, Onride photo, Flash photography and video lighting, Best time to visit, Rider height, and warnings. Tips are shown with a light bulb icon, Fun Facts with a question mark icon, and Hidden Mickeys with a Mickey ears icon.

Besides the Hidden Mickeys section, additional sections include Reviews & Ratings, Recommended For including age groups, You May Also Like, Nearby Dining & Shopping, Photo Prices and Related Links.

You May Also Like is different from Disney's recommended attraction in that MKs recommendation for EE is for similar coasters at WDW. You May Also Like and Nearby Dining & Shopping have links to the listed attractions and restaurants.

Photo Prices are handy to have when you are standing in line at an attraction and deciding on buying the picture afterwards.

MK has only 2 reviews for Expedition Everest and 36 photos. The Google Maps link works great on an iPhone and cell phones that have Google Maps installed. The PDF park map link is also handy.

BEST FOR: A quick information view at the parks. The Expedition Everest page loads in an impressive 8 seconds on my cell phone and could be used as a replacement for the official Disney attraction pages.

LACKING: Reviews and photos. 36 photos is a good number to view, but it would still be nice to see some photos from construction and opening day.

WDW Magic
WDWM includes the PR "Fun Facts", but is primarily focused on original attraction News, Reviews, and Photo Galleries.

The main attraction page focuses on the latest 3 news stories and reviews. Thumbnails from the latest photo gallery are also displayed. A handy navigation menu is shown on the left-hand side of the page, and includes some links not shown on the main page: refurbishments, videos, and discussions.

Since opening day, there has been only one Expedition Everest news story, although Google News reports a story in January 2009 about defibrillators, earlier this summer the new centralized FastPass kiosk in Animal Kingdom included EE FastPasses, and the Expedition Everest Challenge is scheduled for later this month (Sept. 2009).

The construction and opening day news stories are extensive, and some link back to photo galleries.

WDW Magic has the largest number of reviews for all sites referenced in this comparison article, 72 as of 9/4/2009. A 1-10 rating system (10=best) is used, with the score noted visually in stars (5 stars max). The average score is noted on the main page.

WDWM has some impressive construction photo galleries, over 150 total photos. Thumbnail and medium photo resolutions are available. High-resolution photos are available as long as the reader subscribes to a paid WDWMAGICPass account (more on this later). The medium resolution galleries look great on an iPhone. Videos are not viewable unless the reader subscribes to a paid WDWMAGICPass account. Refurbishments reflect an empty list, although the Yeti animatronic was down for a little over a year (as reflected in the news story). Access to discussions requires the user to setup a free WDWMAGICPass account.

WDW Magic Mobile's attraction page looks almost entirely like the full version and loads on my Treo in about 5 seconds (VERY nice). The page includes "Fun Facts", News, Reviews, Refurbishments, and Photos. Reviews load in a impressive 7 seconds, but News and Photos take 30-40 seconds to load, MUCH too long for a cell phone. Also depressing is that photos are kept at thumbnail scale on the mobile version of WDW Magic, which is much too small to be usable on my Treo or iPod Touch (iPhone).

As explained on the WDWM site, the paid WDWMAGICPass was created to help cover bandwidth costs, which are an increasing burden for fan sites to cover. Whether or not $35 a year is better than spending $20 at Amazon for both the Official and Unofficial WDW Guides (which include photographs) and watching WDW videos on YouTube, remains to be seen. The construction content itself may be difficult to find anywhere else, anyway.

BEST FOR: Construction and opening day photo library, news and reviews. This page is a great secondary site to either Disney's or Magical Kingdoms' attraction pages.

LACKING: Additional information (such as attraction specifics, restaurants, shops, photos and merchandise) to be used as a primary attraction reference. The main Expedition Everest page load time could be improved (a mediocre 14 seconds on the main EE attraction page) and response times for mobile News and Photos links could be improved. An apparent oversight, Expedition Everest doesn't appear on WDWMs Animal Kingdom attraction page.

AllEars
A good portion of AE consists of the PR article (both Description and Fun Facts). AE adds sections for Kids & Characters, nearby Dining and Shopping, Official Announcement, and opening photos/reports.

At the top of the page, AE has categorized photo links and a slide show. Almost 100 photos are stored; most are queue photos, but there are also quite a few ride photos. The slide show looks great in an iPod Touch (iPhone).

An "At Large" report explains EEs test vehicle and how it was used in 2006. I am not sure the test vehicle still exists today. Kids & Characters has links to Animal Kingdom character locations and FAQ.

AllEars has approximately 50 photos taken during construction and during the Annual Passholder/Disney Vacation Club Preview in January, 2006. Many photos are of cast members and guests with their reactions after riding the coaster. There are also a couple of pin pictures.

AE has reviews (Preview Reports) from the Preview opening event, but nothing beyond that.

BEST FOR: Opening day photos and reports. AEs lightweight page loads blazingly-fast, less than 5 seconds, on my cell phone. Love the slide show feature.

LACKING: Recent reviews, additional information (such as photos and merchandise). More pin pictures!


Honorable Mention

The following sites have content worth mentioning, but not enough content to be noted as replacements for/additions to Disney's attraction pages:

DIS: An in-depth review is the highlight of the DIS Expedition Everest attraction page. There are also 4 quick facts and links to approximately 150 uncategorized photos as well as the DISboards "Theme Parks Attractions and Strategies" forum. The photos consist mainly of the queue part of the attraction. The DIS EE attraction page loads in a respectable 9 seconds on my Treo. Unfortunately, there is not a direct link from the EE attraction page to the EE Review section of DISboards, which reflects 46 reviews with an average 9.4 rating.

Squidoo (fan page): This photography-based Expedition Everest fan page has an attraction description, PR fun facts split into Fun Facts and The Making of..., ratings (only 8 so far), a YouTube ride video, souvenirs on eBay, similar products on Amazon, a slideshow linked to the Flickr Expedition Everest Group Pool, external links to related EE pages, internal links to other WDW pages, a ride poll, a great photo tip no other site mentioned, and a guest book/comments. Although slightly disorganized, it would be nice to see some of these features in the top attraction sites.

MousePlanet: Stating in its description: "This attraction is almost single-handedly responsible for vaulting Disney's Animal Kingdom past Disney's Hollywood Studios in attendance," MP is a brief summary page composed of 4 sections. General Information, Time Commitment Information, Access Information and Parenting Information. Having no photos/videos or reviews, MPs Access Information section is handy for those with disabilities or health concerns.

INTERCOT: The Expedition Everest attraction page consists of the PR description, the PR Fun Facts, and a Disney EE publicity photo. There are also 27 photos, including a couple of good ones of the Yeti.

Magical Mountain: MM has an Overview, News, Trivia, Images, Reviews, and a link to MMs forums. The overview is interesting, and discusses the announcement of EE during the 5th anniversary of Animal Kingdom and coming full circle with the original Beastly Kingdom. There is only one news story (from 2007), and the trivia comes from part of the PR "Fun Facts". Five pictures and three reviews complete the attractions page. An advertisement appears in the middle of the page's text, and interferes with the flow of the page. MM does have some Expedition Everest merchandise in their store, but no link from their EE attraction page.

Laughing Place: LPs EE attraction page centers around an editor rating system for age groups against the categories: Thrill, Theme and Overall. The page also shows basic attraction attributes for ride type, FastPass, length, typical wait, height & age requirements and warnings.

Wikipedia: As an attraction information source, Wikipedia is not bad. The attraction's story is explained in much more detail than any other site. The Wikipedia page has 4 pictures, a short list of facts, technical details, and incidents. The Times Square publicity stunt (as shown on WDW Magic), and the 2006 attraction award (as shown on Magical Mountain) are included. Wikipedia is an encylopedia and therefore does not have reviews or extensive tourist information.

YouTube: an incredible library of Walt Disney World videos is stored on YouTube. For Expedition Everest, many guests have posted ride videos. Also see Inside Expedition Everest by WDW Imagineering (yes, this is another link Disney should have on their attraction page). Amateur videographers, such as OnRideVideos, have contributed good, edited videos, including rides such as Expedition Everest.

Flickr: The Expedition Everest Group Pool has over 500 photos, some in Flickr's Best of Disney pool.

Podcasts: WDW Radio has many podcasts on Expedition Everest, MouseComedy's interview with the Yeti is quite funny. Also interesting is the Travel Channel's Making of Disney's Expedition Everest and Disney's own Plugged In podcasts including Expedition Everest takes Manhatten and First Peaks at Expedition Everest.

Twitter: As a last resource, get up-to-the-minute news on how everyone is involved with Expedition Everest.


Summary

Attraction content is spread far and wide across the Internet. Disney has quite a bit of the content that is out there, but still needs to find a way to consolidate it all together.

Speaking of attraction content spread far and wide, extinct WDW attractions are also inconsistently distributed across the web, and is therefore a tough topic to cover in this article. It will therefore be covered in a new article.

Originally posted 9/3/09, Squidoo added 9/7/09