Disney World Tiki Room

The following is from an article on "tweaking" existing attractions at Disney.

"...Imagineers cite the Enchanted Tiki Room, the Magic Kingdom's animatronic bird show, which was reputedly one of Walt Disney's favorites when the original opened at Disneyland in 1963.

Disney World got its own Tiki Room when the Orlando park opened in 1971. But by the mid-1990s the show was stale, Mangum said.

Disney closed the show, enlivened the animatrons' singing and dialogue and reopened it in 1999 with a sign that reads, "Under New Management." Disney World officials say the new attraction is more popular than the original..."

The article can be found at http://orlandosentinel.com/business/tourism/orl-asecfigment28052802may28.story

WHO is the tiki room more popular with now? People with severe psychosis? It SUCKS!

If they're going strictly by numbers, they must be neglecting the fact that there are just more people in the park in general now than pre-"revamp" {read: utter moronification}

Rain

I went in March, and was very disappointed. The idea was kind of cute, but the show was too short, the angry goddess looked and sounded more African than Polynesian (just an observation, not a racist comment), the music was too "hip", and I don't think Tikis would rap.
It was nice to find out at least two of the original performers (Wally Boag - Jose, and Thurl Ravenscroft - Fritz) were still alive and recorded updated parts. It was kind of funny to hear Pierre sounding just like Lumiere (Jerry Orbach did the voice for both).
On the whole, though, The original Disneyland Tiki Room is the best.

I don't get why they have to have one or the other... I don't see why "rides" or "shows" even when programmed and animatronic, have to be exactly the same every time... there's no technological reason why disney couldn't program several different shows running the same length, playing randomly so you never know which one you'll get.

yeah, i thought it seemed awful short, but i wasn't sure.

i was getting the caribbean voodoo vibe from the angry goddess - no one can seem to get Pele right, y'know? on the hawaii five-o episode with "Pele" they did her up like a japanese kabuki or noh theater character.

OH, and there is now a singing tiki AND bird in a macdonalds close to universal studios here. it's SO similar that I can't help but wonder if it was sold to them by disney.

After seeing the new tiki room show in Florida last year, the only thing I can say is this....."Someday they will un-freeze Walt Disney and he is going to be really pissed about that show."

Erich Troudt

[ Edited by: Tangaroa 2007-01-22 07:09 ]

That's good background info...
I work in illustration, and I know exactly what it's like when people want to ruin something good. You just gotta bite your lip and scribble over a DaVinci with crayons.
One thing I can say, though, is this:
at least it's still there!!! It SUCKS that they took away 20000 leagues and Mr. Toad --- those were two of my favorites. I'm just happy that the Tiki place is still there to look at.

It SUCKS that they took away 20000 leagues and Mr. Toad --- those were two of my favorites.

As for Mr. Toad, I will say the new Pooh ride is pretty cool. Lots of fun bouncing with Tigger and floating in the flood.
And there is a neat picture in the queuing area of Mr. Toad handing over the deed to the place.

One other thing that is somewhat depressing about the rehab at the Magic Kingdom is that the Adventureland section (by far the coolest section of the park) now had Aladdin themed rides and attractions for kids.

The fact that they're kids rides is not the problem, it's the fact that Aladdin is NOT "castaway style" as the original Adventureland is, it's instead all desert and sand themed. Which, sitting in the middle of Adventureland just looks so frigging odd, since Adventureland is all polynesian and island-themed.

Depressing.

~Hanford

[ Edited by: Tangaroa 2007-01-22 07:09 ]

Hanford, I definitely agree. At Disneyland in Anaheim they have an Aladdin Oasis theatre squeezed in right between the Tiki Room and the Jungle Cruise. I always thought that was really odd. It just doesn't look right in that environment.

why not stick it right there? isn't the gobi desert RIGHT BETWEEN polynesia and new zealand?

it's not? oh, those crazy disney execs had me fooled.
:P

anyways.
wouldn't the swiss family tree house be a happenin' place for a tiki party?

[ Edited by: Tangaroa 2007-01-22 07:10 ]

OK, don't want to start a war here, but isn't it called ADVENTUREland? Adventures can be had anywhere, right?

yeah, but we like polynesian stuff.
and i don't like change.
hehe

On 2002-05-30 17:12, Biotron2000 wrote:
OK, don't want to start a war here, but isn't it called ADVENTUREland? Adventures can be had anywhere, right?

Yeah, but regardless of the name of the land, the architecture and themeing should reflect a strong, consistant tone that's easy to buy in to. With 90% of the land lookuing jungle, throwing an Arabian-inspired desert building in there just looks odd.

~Hanford

Quoth Hanford: "Yeah, but regardless of the name of the land, the architecture and themeing should reflect a strong, consistant tone that's easy to buy in to."

I totally agree. What makes Adventureland in Anaheim so frickin' cool is that that lost-in-the-jungle feeling, even though it contains such disparate locales as the (anywhere) Swiss Family Robinson (now Tarzan) treehouse, the (Polynesian) Tiki Room, the (African) Jungle Cruise, the (Caribbean) Pirates of the Caribbean, and the (Mayan/Cambodian) Temple of the Forbidden Eye. The store theming reflects the same stuff, selling cool Afro-Polynesian stuff. And Bengal Barbecue? Adding Aladdin just doesn't fit.

On the other hand, the Adventureland at Disneyland Paris is totally Moroccan/Aladdin inspired and works great. It's the coolest part of the park (though I'll accept arguments that the Jules Verne theming in their version of Tomorrowland rocks too). The detailing there in the Aladdin theme is every bit as good as the detailing in Adventureland in Anaheim, but in a totally different genre. And they do have one toilet/ATM combo that's decorated with masks and tapa cloth, but it's just outside the big Aladdin-style gate, so the two themes don't clash... unlike having an Aladdin entrance between Jungle Cruise and Tiki Room -- that just sucks.

If you want, I can post some pictures (eventually) if you want and haven't had a chance to hit D-Land Paris.

-Jon

[ Edited by: horizon mombo on 2002-10-02 11:01 ]

Let's suggest to Disney Wizards the following improvements:
1.Adventureland should have a moon walk simulator because it's the ultimate
Adventure-a walk on the moon,Right?
(It's doesn't belong in Tomorrowland
because our moon trips are a thing of the past.)
2.Gut the tiki room and start over from a
polynesian cultural tradition that informs
the public true hawaiian mythology as
they'er entertained with real island song/music (Come-on,We can do better than the Polynesian Cultural Center the Mormons built in Hawaii!)
3.Build a time machine ride in Adventureland too ,THAT could be a great adventure but would it be a thing of the future?(Nooo,A time machine can go anywhere in time.)
4.Alternate the actions and lines the
charactors perform so no two shows are the same twice,(in a selection at random of ten action/dialogue.
Some of these ideas are Good ideas,Some are Piss-poor..Can you tell which ones are which? You might have more discernment than most design execs at Disney these days.

Let's suggest to Disney Wizards the following improvements:
1.Adventureland should have a moon walk simulator because it's the ultimate
Adventure-a walk on the moon,Right?
(It's doesn't belong in Tomorrowland
because our moon trips are a thing of the past.)
2.Gut the tiki room and start over from a
polynesian cultural tradition that informs
the public true hawaiian mythology as
they'er entertained with real island song/music (Come-on,We can do better than the Polynesian Cultural Center the Mormons built in Hawaii!)
3.Build a time machine ride in Adventureland too ,THAT could be a great adventure but would it be a thing of the future?(Nooo,A time machine can go anywhere in time.)
4.Alternate the actions and lines the
charactors perform so no two shows are the same twice,(in a selection at random of ten action/dialogue.
Some of these ideas are Good ideas,Some are Piss-poor..Can you tell which ones are which? You might have more discernment than most design execs at Disney these days.

I remember reading in a Disney News article once that the Adventurelands in each of the parks were designed to be different from each other on purpose. The Anaheim park was designed with a castaway theme, the Orlando park has a British Colonialism theme and the Tokyo park has an arabic theme. They are each exotic themes that lend themselves to the Adventureland concept, they each just have a different flavor.

OK - so my last tiki stop in Tokyo was Tokyo Disneyland. As the previous posts have mentioned, the show "update" called "Get the Fever" is strange to say the least - the gold-chained birds with names like "scat" singing "hot, hot, hot" are bizarre & defy explanation - - but I did see something I didn't expect as they were ushering us out of the show - a Bosko tiki being projected on the floor!

& here are a few other pictures....the base of the fountain

& the outside...

& the entrance to Adventureland

The revamp of WDW's Adventureland was a bit of a disappointment for me, as looks as if they had to shoehorn in the Magic Carpet ride in to fit the space. I remember days past when that plaza was full of people and the The Tropical Serenade building had an unobstructed view.

That section of the park was, IMHO, one of the best art-directed and executed things in the Magic Kingdom, managing to stay unadulterated for 20+ years. Not only is the Agraba re-themeing not as nicely done, the area lost a couple of very nice shops with good merchandise when the changeover was made. Of course, today they'd probably only be filled with plush animals, inflatable bouncing balls, and plastic crap anyway.

[ Edited by: Tangaroa 2007-01-22 07:07 ]

Oh come on. It's WDW Magic Kingdom we're talking about. That thing was born tacky and will always be tacky.

Just look around at the park. Their Fantasyland is a husk of painted flats with no flow, nothing to draw the eye, and a total lack of rides compared to Disneyland's. Where's Casey Jr? Where's the Matterhorn? Where's Monstro the Whale and Storybook? Where's Pinocchio, Toad or Alice? Nonexistent theme and acres of dead space. I far prefer Disneyland's cobblestones and quaint bavarian villiage.

Their Tomorrowland is a joke, a failed theme, possibly grasping at something like Las Vegas.

Liberty Square is the only place where the theming really works. And that's kind of sad.

I grew up going to Disneyland, and when I went to the Magic Kingdom for the first time, I have to admit I really had to recalibrate my enjoyment. It really seemed that the whole park was tacky and overly loud and annoying. Like you took the original Disneyland and turned its design and execution over to Six Flags.

Oh, and their Pirates sucks.

But the Tacky Tacky Tacky Tacky Tacky Room I took as a good joke. It wasn't a bad show, if you know you have the real tiki room to go home to.

:wink:

It's true that WDW's Magic Kingdom doesn't have the charm of Disneyland, especially since we haven't had the kinds of elaborate rehabs California has received.

DL's Fantasyland didn't look so great until 1982 -- WDW's was just following the Disneyland look of the late '60s. It's hard to believe that Florida didn't even end up getting the unique Fantasyland rides originally slated for it. 20K probably ate up all the space where Casey Jr. and the canal boats would have gone. It was a step in the right direction to get that ride out of Tomorrowland, but there was, as you point out, no flow or cohesiveness in the area, sitting across from Mr. Toad.

It's a shame you never saw it in the '70s and early '80s. Things were still pretty much to original then.

Oh, and you can blame our crappy Pirates ride on the tourists. As a boy, I was transfixed by the model of the Western River Expedition in the Walt Disney Story post-show. That what I was waiting to be built.

My 2nd most disappointing moment in WDW this last spring (2nd to the terrible Tiki room of course, I mean the TIKI GODS singing doowop!!?) was Main Street USA. I was in the Dinosaur portion of Wild Animal Kingdom, you know the one that feels like an old school carnival with classic midway games and such, and I suddenly had a hankering to scoot over to the Magic Kingdom Park (thanks to my flexpass). I was totally in the mood to play around in the Arcade on Main street. So we went over that evening only to find that the building facade marked "Arcade" was just another goddamn mall. Soooooo very disappointing. I really missed the penny arcade with it's Victorian coin-op goodness.

No soul to the place whatsoever. Though in it's defense, I have to say their jungle cruise ride really rocks. The whole Cambodian temple tunnels with gamelan softly playing was really awesome... but right after exiting the tunnel I got stung by a bee! Right there in the Magic Kingdom!

Uhh... where was I? What was my point? I dunno. I'm just mad I didn't make it out to Mai Kai while I was out there, because I can't forsee going back to Florida anytime soon...

-Joe

[ Edited by: Tangaroa 2007-01-22 07:08 ]

On 2002-06-03 12:33, Jon Tiki wrote:
What makes Adventureland in Anaheim so frickin' cool is that that lost-in-the-jungle feeling, even though it contains such disparate locales as the (anywhere) Swiss Family Robinson (now Tarzan) treehouse, the (Polynesian) Tiki Room, the (African) Jungle Cruise, the (Caribbean) Pirates of the Caribbean, and the (Mayan/Cambodian) Temple of the Forbidden Eye.

Just a quick aside: Pirates of the Carribean is not in Adventureland. It is in New Orleans Square.

Cheers,
Gwen Smith

On 2005-07-23 21:22, Hot Lava wrote:
As a boy, I was transfixed by the model of the Western River Expedition in the Walt Disney Story post-show. That what I was waiting to be built.

...while those of us who went to Disneyland fairly regularly as children will fondly recall the Discovery Bay concept model. ::sigh:: That would have been good.

Cheers,
Gwen Smith

Oh, don't even get me started about the closure of WDW's Penny Arcade. :(

Once they built the new arcade next to Space Mountain, the Penny Arcade was closed and the vast majority of the really cool old arcade games were sold to an auction company to dispose of, including the amazing huge band organ that sat in the back.

Whenever I go to Disneyland, I always pump a couple of dollars of quarters into the band organ there as an incentive for them to keep it.

I know a little bit about the history of Thunder Mesa from Jim Hill's site. It's still a crying shame that wasn't built. The model made it look like it would be the most incredible thing ever.

[ Edited by: Hot Lava 2016-09-23 11:37 ]

[ Edited by: tangaroa 2007-01-22 07:06 ]

Rum Demon...

yeah, i grew up in Florida and have very fond memories of the early WDW. the last time i was there, around 10 years ago, it was heading in the wrong direction. i can only guess what some of the 'improvements' like the new tiki room and main street are like.

whenever i can, i buy pieces of the good ol' days to line my tomb with when i go....

one of these days, I'll get around to lighting it up again.

i know that back in '95, the penny arcade became some type of sports clothing store (some turn of the century theme, there!). is it still sports oriented or is it something else now?

I didn't really notice. All I knew was that there was no penny arcade. I wouldn't be so upset if they just replaced the sign with one that said "Another Damn Store".

I also didn't like the extreme distance between my car and the park, with requisite lake in between. Maybe it's just there to get us used to waiting.

Meanwhile, what's with this Discovery Bay? Did it used to exist in one of the parks? Was it a Jules Verne kinda thing? Anyone?

-Joe

Discovery Bay has two direct decendents which made it into Disney parks.

Discoveryland is in Disneyland Paris, where our Tomorrowland goes. That's a Jules Verne themed land. Their Space Mountain is themed as an 1890's Voyage to the Moon. The Nautilus is there as a walk-through attraction, etc.

Tokyo DisneySea has Port Discovery, which also has some similar elements.

But Mysterious Island at Tokyo DisneySea really pays off on much of the thrills promised by the old Discovery Bay.

That volcano looks incredible! Now if I could just figure out how to build one in my backyard.

You'll need several million dollars & rocket burners from NASA... that's what we used, and it seemed to work out OK...

I found this video the other day on YouTube, it's of a couple minutes from the Tokyo version of the Enchanted Tiki Room. This is the first chance I've had to actually see a bit of it, before now I've only heard descriptions of it having more of a "salsa" sound. The clip is short, and includes the birds singing a Japanese version of "I Wanna Be Like You" and the Tiki Room song.

Japanese Enchanted Tiki Room on YouTube

On 2006-10-13 11:30, Humuhumu wrote:
I found this video the other day on YouTube, it's of a couple minutes from the Tokyo version of the Enchanted Tiki Room. This is the first chance I've had to actually see a bit of it, before now I've only heard descriptions of it having more of a "salsa" sound. The clip is short, and includes the birds singing a Japanese version of "I Wanna Be Like You" and the Tiki Room song.

Ahhh.. Memories.... Ms. VanTiki and I lived in Japan for a few years (a bit of an extended adventure/vacation/learning experience) and took many trips to Tokyo Disney. I actually have a CD of the Japanese Tiki Room soundtrack, and it is one of my favs on the old' iTunes playlist! Tokyo Disney sea is my favorite Disney park by far - simply astounding design and execution. A huge park that has a totally convincing horizon line - nothing modern breaks the park's illusion of place. The rides are so-so, but I could have walked around that park forever! We were there within a year of the parks opening, and it was practically empty (of course, it was a FREEZING rainy fall day). Some photos of the artistry:

On 2006-10-13 11:30, Humuhumu wrote:
I found this video the other day on YouTube

old room

[ Edited by: filslash 2008-09-17 17:43 ]

On 2006-12-04 20:19, filslash wrote:
Aloha

On 2006-10-13 11:30, Humuhumu wrote:
I found this video the other day on YouTube

And my friend shack passes on this link to the old room It's 17 minutes long and super excellent.

---

peace,
fil/

[ Edited by: filslash 2006-12-04 20:20 ]

One of the comments to this Tiki Room video says:

"In the Disney Wedding packages, you can hold your reception inside one of the park's attractions, including this one."

Has anyone here heard of this possibility?

It was great seeing that, especially the singing flowers. I used to go to Disneyland at least 2 or 3 times every summer...it was such a fun place. I especially remember the GE theater and was fascianted when the characters predicted we would now be driving in hoover craft....my SUV is NOT a hoover craft....it is a big let down for me everytime I am on the freeway. Dang that video is good when the tikis really get down!!!

Tang/Barker Bird, have you seen the Disneyland Beginnings exhibit on the USC website?

In 1955 the park consisted of 5 "lands": Main Street, Fantasyland, Adventureland, Frontierland, and Tomorrowland. Many of the rides were not finished. Adventureland had only one ride: the Jungle Cruise. Tomorrowland had more exhibits than rides. Landmarks we are all familiar with were absent in 1955: neither the Matterhorn nor the Monorial had been built yet. There were rides and exhibits that are now long gone: the Aluminum Hall of Fame, Rocket to the Moon, a 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea exhibit (a movie tie-in!), and Space Station X-1 in Tomorrowland, and stage coach rides in Frontierland. Fantasyland had rides that are still open today: King Arthur Carousel, Snow White's Adventures, Dumbo, and the kid-terrifying Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, but was missing the Autopia (1956), and It's a Small World (1966).

And a note on it from Boing-Boing:

Tim sez, "With regard to that shot of the giant squid, I was 10 years old when I went through the "20,000 Leagues" show at Disneyland in July, 1959. (I met Walt the same day!) That photograph is just the tip of the iceberg. The exhibit was a walk-through of the sets from the movie, and was one of the coolest things in the park. As you probably know, the Nautilus (designed by the great Harper Goff, who worked on movies and the theme parks until his demise in the 1990s, and was one of the "Firehouse Five" dixieland jazz group with other studio guys, and who hung around with Jack Webb!) has attained a cult status. And for the kids lucky enough to have strolled through the actual sets (like George Lucas), it stands out among early Disneyland memories. One interesting little note: The elaborate pipe organ that Capt. Nemo plays in the film is still at Disneyland. It's in the 'ballroom' scene in the Haunted Mansion, repainted white. Early, nearly-unfinished Disneyland was the coolest place, where a boy's or girls's imagination filled in the blanks, in the empty, dusty spaces that Walt and his artists had not yet built anything upon. Today, there's not an inch of unassigned real estate in Disneyland. Too bad."

That 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea exhibit sounds like it'd still be cool if tied into a Discovery Bay-type redo of Tom Sawyer Island.

Rev. Dr. Frederick J. Freelance, Ph.D., D.F.S

[ Edited by: freddiefreelance 2006-12-05 10:26 ]

Discovery Bay-type redo of Tom Sawyer Island.

I heard that tom sawyer island might be redone as a pirate island. Which would be cool...but jules verne is cool too....

Here it is on Youtube. And I agree, this is tragic compared to Disneyland Anaheim:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C__11rUroZ0

i agree with tangaroa...
the "new" tiki room IS annoying.

also as hanford said...the aladdin thing doesnt
even belong in the adventureland section on the park.

i go to the magic kindom about six times a year
and have to say the "new" things they're doing
are really sucking!

small fire in the disney world tiki room - coincidence? or something more sinister?

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2011-01-12/news/os-fire-disney-tiki-room-magic-kingdo20110112_1_small-fire-fire-sprinklers-attraction