The Disenchanted Tiki Room Walt Disney World FL

I was completely disenchanted by the Tiki Room at Walt Disney World, Fl. It is "under new management" with Gilbert Gottfried singing broadway style, disco balls, a tiki god diva, rap music and music by The Miami Sound Machine.

To top it all off, there was no gift shop, no Shag merchandise to be found. BOO!

For more info about the ride and my disenchanting experience, check out my blog.

http://populuxebooks.com/blog/index.php/2007/01/14/the_disenchanted_tiki_room_aamp_potc_wal

[ Edited by: populuxe 2007-01-14 08:43 ]

It scares me that Gilbert Godfried can or does sing. I would have to imagiine that the annoying sound of his voice might compel patrons to drink faster to get the buzz going so that he is no longer annoying. Pardon my sarcasm, but OUCH. Miami Sound Machine is Tiki??? Man oh man!

Last time I was in Disney World was about 2 or 3 summers ago. I too was dissapointed in the Tiki Room, at that point it had the Gilbert Gottfried voice. The gift shop had nothing really cool to offer. The only thing they had that was remotely tiki were plastic tiki mugs like the ones you would find in Wal-Mar with Mickey Mouse ears on top. Trust me, they weren't cool at all. It really bugs me when you take a place like Disney World and 'update' it to keep the new generations interested. I think these creative people that do that kinda stuff just do it out of fear. Also on that same visit I was dissapointed to see that they got rid of the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Ride. Great example: when I was a kid on my first few visits to WDW I didn't know jack about that movie, but I loved the ride and went on it at every visit. Now I think they use that spot in the park for a Little Mermaid ride. Other rides they got rid of long ago were Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and If You Had Wings which I totally loved, I think they use that spot now for a Jimmy Neutron ride. But hey overall you can't beat the total escapism of WDW it's still tons 'o fun. They still have Pirates of the Carribean!!! I have gone there at least a dozen times since 1973, and I've seen some of the changes. And in all that time I NEVER went to the Enchanted Tiki Room until that last visit I mentioned, so I can't really complain. I shoulda got in there in previous years while the gettin was good.

Populuxe I just checked out the Youtube clip of Johnny Depp on the POTC ride. I had no idea they added his character to the ride. I guess that's pretty cool, at least they didn't completely re-vamp it beyond recognition. That ride is truly a work of art and mechanical mastery. Really amazing with or without Depp. By the way it looks like they've improved their mechanics judging by the movements and details of the Depp character. Jeez..it looks very real! Who ever thought Depp would sell his hide to Disney in such a hardcore way. Never thought he would go that route, but hey..he must have money to frickin burn at this point!

[ Edited by: donhonyc 2007-01-14 10:27 ]

I was also slightly disappointed...especially with the lack of merchandise. I posted some comments here but I haven't reposted all the pics that are missing.

Obviously when Disney makes decisions to upgrade their parks, we would hope those decisions are determined and reviewed by a board of Disney execs that weigh the benefits of change from not only a financial point of view but from a historical and also a focus of direction. Do they care about customer satisfaction or is it all bottom line, I tend to think it is the latter. It would be interesting to hear from some of our TC members that have been involved in Disney upgrades through the years, just as to how those decisions are made. Let's face it , Disney is there to make money and turn a profit, but as in the wisdom of Spock, does "The good of the many outweigh the good of the one" - and who is the one in this case - the Disney stockholders.

Why do they go and change a great classic feature?

[ Edited by: jpmartdog 2007-01-14 11:03 ]

I have been to WDW hundreds of times over the years and I've seen the spirit of Walt fade away. It goes so gradually, not all at once. They change a little here, renovate a little there, and before you know it, a lot of the magic is gone. The Tiki Room is just one of many examples. The Disney parks are just one of many revenue generators for the Walt Disney Company these days. I believe the people who make the money decisions are very far removed from the creative process. And that's totally different than it was back in the day when the creative departments had a direct line to Walt and Walt had a direct line to his brother Roy, who controlled the money.

I don't want to sound totally negative though. The parks are still overall wonderful and leaps above the competition. But slowly, over time, a lot of the magic is fading. The general public doesn't notice it, but for those who have been around for a while and those who pay attention to the details, it's very noticable.

If you want to read some insider "whining" about the current state of Disney parks from the point of view of current and former Disney Imagineers, GO HERE.