Walt Disney World is one of the biggest success stories in the history of American economics. That being said, there is still much more room to grow. On a technicality, Disney can build 2-3 more theme parks in the Lake Buena Vista area. They have not built anything since 1998’s Animal Kingdom and while I strongly believe that they should improve each of the theme parks before going any further (especially Animal Kingdom), its fun to dream the impossible and dream up what would be the fifth theme park under the Disney banner in Florida. Here are my picks for what ideas should become Disney theme parks.
#7: Baseball Park
Chances: None
Imagine this, a ballpark built inside a theme park. Now, if you just want to watch the game or not spend the one-day ticket to see the game, there is an alternate entrance that you can go through prior to game time. Otherwise, if you buy the one-day ticket, not only can you walk around and enjoy the baseball scenery and baseball history, you can then just walk right into the baseball park. For days in which there is no baseball game, the baseball field can whether be used for special events, or when it is closed the price to get in the park is much cheaper. Inside this baseball theme park are dozens of smaller baseball fields, plenty of space for playing catch, MLB memorabilia all over the place, and of course ballpark cuisine.
Now, some will point out the Wide World of Sports, and my rebuttal is that the baseball field there has far too few seats for a professional baseball team, which is why the Rays no longer play there. This theme park is secretly a ploy and a way for Orlando to finally get that well-deserved baseball team, and I’d love for a ballpark to be built inside a much larger park. There is actually a park in Texas that uses this similar style, and I personally love the idea. A baseball theme park…that would be something.
#6: Halo
Chances: None
Back in my days at Epcot, me and a few co-workers dreamed up of the perfect paintball arena: a totally empty Animal Kingdom. Imagine this: Animal Kingdom with no guests, no cast members, just totally empty, with the animals. With the safari alone being bigger than the Magic Kingdom, a paintball match there would be epic to the ultimate degree. Of course, this would never be allowed by Disney, not ever. Enter the Halo theme park.
Imagine all the worlds and areas of Halo compacted into one; and then separated into multiple massive paintball arenas. While this would be a bit more restrictive, this park could run in a manner similar to Discovery Cove---higher prices, smaller space, heavy on the quality. There has never really been a paintball arena to this magnitude, but such an invention could shake up the industry for good. Imagine being able to dress up as one of the soldiers and march out there to take out other guests (and maybe even participating cast members?). I just wouldn’t expect hidden mickeys anywhere around here.
#5: Marvel
Chances: Minimal
With Disney now owning Marvel, a theme park based off of the hundreds of Marvel characters is bound to happen---as soon as Universal drops the partnership. Universal should have dropped Marvel as quickly as possible to avoid technically advertising for Disney profits, but that’s something I’ll never understand. Nonetheless, instead of just one section dedicated to Marvel, why not give them an entire theme park? You can represent all the big cities, and have all sorts of Marvel characters just running around. A Marvel park would pave the way for tons more stunt shows and live-action shows at the most unexpected moments. This would finally be the park to appeal the younger boys and teenagers. Instead of a Princess castle, you got New York City and Spider-Man looking over.
#4: South America
Chances: None
Like Australia, there is absolutely no love for South America in Epcot OR Animal Kingdom. However, the perceived notions of South America amongst the North Americans are so different from reality there has to be a park built to represent the wonderful different cultures south of the Panama Canal. With this park, you can see South American wildlife, entertainment, cuisine, and history. This would be the World Showcase sequel, except the whole park is a World Showcase-like park. Give Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and the other South American countries a chance to finally shine in the Disney environment. All the other continents (with the exception of Australia) are represented very well in Epcot and Animal Kingdom. Its time South America rises up.
#3: Pirates of the Caribbean
Chances: Minimal
Imagine a water park the size of a theme park. Imagine the transportation consisting of pirate ships docking in different islands every so often. Imagine potentially finding Jack Sparrow, Captain Hook, Long John Silver, and even Barbosa throughout your time in the park. My dream theme park about pirates would be a mesh of water rides with massive pools with extensive and diverse seafood cuisine, with plenty of rip-roaring entertainment in the high-seas. Imagine a park where you can visit all over the Caribbean as well as Atlantis and the Bermuda Triangle. Day one I’d visit.
#2: Mushroom Kingdom
Chances: Extremely Minimal
I will not dwell into any more details about this park, since it’s an idea I’ve worked on for a couple of years on and off. Imagine the entire world of Nintendo wrapped into one theme park. The possibilities are absolutely endless, as you see princesses, heroes, villains, and a wide variety of supporting characters. You have your castles, you have your diverse worlds, and you have a nearly endless display of potential as the company continues to rise and run the gaming industry. Literally, the idea is at Disney’s feet, since Nintendo and Disney are both seen as family-friendly companies that do whatever it takes to maintain its reputation. Nintendo’s products are both consumer and family friendly. They both have well-known characters that have stood the test of time. This is a collaboration that would kill the competition in a heartbeat. Guaranteed.
#1:
Star Wars: The Theme Park
Chances: Minimal
Yes. Yes. YES! Imagine Star Wars Weekends happening every single day. Imagine the entire Star Wars universe condensed into a massive Disney theme park. Lucasarts and Disney already get along well; their Star Wars Weekends is a yearly smash-hit, and the amount of potential and referential material is quite extensive. The six Star Wars movies were not just massive worldwide hits, they also provided the entertainment industry with amazingly diverse environments, and all of them can be replicated for the enjoyment of Star Wars fans everywhere. I’d love to see Hoth, Bespin, Tatooine, Naboo, and even the Death Star re-created for us to see and visit. The thrill rides would be potentially incredible, and the character interactions would be life-changing. Stormtroopers everywhere, Darth Maul walking about and maybe even a princess or two just around the corner.
The other reason this is #1 is because this collaboration has indeed happened, just in a very small environment. Hollywood Studios and Disneyland have enjoyed success with Star Tours and all the Star Wars memorabilia. Then like I previously mentioned, there’s Star Wars Weekends, which I am shocked does not last a bit longer. Just the thought of being involved in re-created battles of Endor, the Death Star, Hoth, the second Death Star, and some of the prequel battles sends shivers down my spine. This would dethrone and absolutely blow out the Harry Potter Universal collaboration out of the water. Just no Jar-Jar Binks please.
If you have any ideas for what types of parks Disney should build, comment away!!
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