Cars Land, the land itself, is incredible. For the preview, we were brought in by the side entrance, over by the Pacific Wharf area, and the sight of Ornament Valley as you walk under the arch and onto Route 66 left me awestruck, to the point where I lost my place in line. I've watched these mountains be constructed; they seem to have been pretty much finished for close to six months, and I'd seen them from afar. I was excited to see them up close, but was shocked by just how impressive they were from inside the land. I highly recommend, if you have a choice, you enter Cars Land by that side entrance, it's really a shockingly impressive image, and an ideal first impression.
I think most elements of Cars Land and Buena Vista Street are very well done, but it is the mountains that truly are some of the best work ever done by Disney. There's pretty much no fault I can possibly find with Ornament Valley. The town of Radiator Springs is also impressive, though not quite as jaw-droppingly so. A bit smaller than I expected, but big enough, it seems, it really does capture the town from the movies, and if it's overshadowed by the wilderness around it, I suppose the town in the movie was, too.
I suppose it's at night where Radiator Springs gives Monument Valley a run for its money. The neon of Radiator Springs is very nice. The mountains also look good lit up at night, but while I had heard before seeing it myself that the mountains really shined at night, I actually preferred them during the day. It's a close call, the mountains look good at night, too, but I liked being able to see all the details as much as possible during the day. But again, I must emphasize, day or night, it's an incredible view.
The town, on the other hand, does certainly look better at night. I will say I was slightly less impressed with the town than I expected, but I think that's just because of high expectations. I think my feeling about the look of the signs was basically, they look like they look, and either they will look that way, or Disney will screw it up. Well, Disney didn't screw it up. The neon is first-rate, and all the reason you need to stick around DCA well after dark.
Now to the rides, in order of hype. Luigi's Flying Tires has not had the best word-of-mouth prior to Cars Land opening. In fact, if you read MiceAge, you probably know this ride is an unmitigated disaster. So I was surprised to find that I enjoyed it. I didn't have too much trouble maneuvering my tire, which I rode solo. I actually got some good speed. And while bumping the other tires isn't as satisfying as most bumper-car experiences, the beach balls add a bit of camaraderie between you and the other tires. I enjoyed the ride, and would like to ride it again. Unfortunately, the rumor about the ride's painfully long loading time and embarrassingly low capacity are quite true. Early on in the preview night, I got on this ride with almost no waiting in line. But wait I did; once I got on my tire, it was easily four to five minutes before the ride started. No wonder it soon had a two hour wait. I liked the ride, but I don't see how it's slow capacity won't doom it. It's funner than you think, and riding it solo it's easy to get a hang of controlling it. But I hope the early negative responses scare off 90% of park visitors, or this is going to have hellacious waits.
LUIGI'S FLYING TIRES VERDICT: GOOD, BUT NOT WORTH MORE THAN A 10-15 MINUTE WAIT.
While Luigi's Flying Tires had bad reviews leading up to the park opening, Mater's Junkyard Jamboree had very good buzz going for it. Personally, I enjoyed it, though I wouldn't let the good reviews get your expectations too high. It's a fun little ride, reminiscent of the Tea Cups, or more reminiscent of Francis' Ladybug Boogie (aka the only fun ride in A Bug's Land), except that instead of riding in the main vehicle, you are being towed behind it, and are whipped around whenever you change direction. It's fun, and Mater's songs make it only more so, but it's still just a spinning ride. A very good one, but don't expect a mind-blowing experience. I will admit, the first time I road it, I was in hysterics listening to Larry the Cable Guy's safety spiel (I'll give Larry credit, I'm not a fan, but he's a good fit for Mater).
So, yes, it's a fun ride, and it can handle a pretty good number of riders for a ride of its kind, but I still have to assume this will have pretty long lines for the next six months or year or so, and I don't see myself waiting in long lines for it. I'd suggest, if the line's long, maybe save it for another visit, if that's an option for you. It's a pretty good ride, but there are better ways to spend your time.
MATER'S JUNKYARD JAMBOREE VERDICT: VERY GOOD, WORTH 20-30 MINUTE WAIT IF YOU'VE NEVER RODE IT BEFORE, 10-15 MINUTE WAIT FOR RETURNING SQUARE-DANCERS
So I guess between Luigi and Mater, I'd give the edge to Mater. Both rides are about equally compelling, but seeing as Mater is the only ride of the two likely to have only a 10-15 minute wait anytime this year, it wins out due to logistics.
And then, of course, there's the E-ticket. Radiator Springs Racers. It's a great ride. How great depends on just what you include as part of the ride. Is Ornament Valley part of the ride, or is Ornament Valley an attraction unto itself, that Radiator Springs Racers just travels through? It's hard to say. On the one hand, to look at an analogous example, I would never think of taking the buttes and mountains out of the equation before evaluating Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. That would just seem silly. But as nice as the rock work in Frontierland is, I don't go there just to look at it (though look at it I do). Big Thunder Mountain needs the ride to sustain itself; Ornament Valley does not. Which isn't to say Disney could have gotten away with opening Cars Land without a ride. People need things to do in Cars Land. But still, just seeing the Cars universe is the star attraction here, and that's why I have a hard time saying definitively whether Ornament Valley is part of Radiator Springs Racers, or if Radiator Springs Racers is just passing through. (It's almost as if, to use a Disney term, the Radiator Springs Racers ride is Cars Land's "weenie," and the ride serves as encouragement to get people out to see the mountain, instead of the other way around)
Why does it matter? Well, the easy answer is it doesn't, really. But it's hard not to rank rides and attractions, and how well Radiator Springs Racers stacks up has a lot to do with Ornament Valley. Simply put, include Ornament Valley as part of the attraction, and Radiator Springs Racers is quite possibly the best thing Disney's ever done. Judge Radiator Spring Racers on it's own merits, without Ornament Valley, and it's another solid Disney E-Ticket, a great ride, but not quite the best. Better than Indiana Jones, probably better than Splash Mountain, probably about on par with Space Mountain but trailing Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean (though of course such rankings are very subjective, and the attractions so different it's hard to compare).
So, it sounds like my final verdict comes down to some rather arbitrary distinctions about where to draw the border around Radiator Springs Racers. My personal opinion is that the ride cannot completely take credit for the brilliance of Ornament Valley, but that excluding it from consideration in evaluating the ride just seems silly. My favorite part of the ride is actually the beginning, before you enter the show building, where you just cruise around Ornament Valley, up to the bridge and waterfall, and just take in the sights. Maybe Ornament Valley is not strictly part of the ride, but the ride is an excellent way to view it (like, say, how Storybook Land isn't part of Casey Jr., strictly speaking, but it still adds to the attraction). The final portion, where you actually race, also gives a good view of the mountains, but here the ride actually might detract a bit, as you have the speed and the banked turns and the "race" with the other car to distract you. I liked the racing part, but not as much as the first, leisurely part of the ride. I think I wish it was a bit faster, a bit more thrilling. But I get why it's the speed it is; it's a good compromise between the little kids that want to ride through the movie Cars, and the adults who want a bit of an adrenaline jolt. I wouldn't call this a thrill ride, but it's an exciting ride, and I did get into the racing element, though I imagine the novelty of that will wear off soon enough.
As for the middle of the ride? The dark ride portion was impressive. The animatronic cars are quite impressive. This portion of the ride is definitely not Disney's best, compared to such classics as Pirates and Haunted Mansion, but it's good, and there are nice little touches here and there. For the most part, though, once I was in the show building, I was just eager to get back outside and see the mountains some more (have you noticed yet that I liked the mountains?).
Overall, Radiator Springs Racers is a great ride. Anyway you look at it, it's the best ride in DCA, and looks to be an instant classic. I can't wait to go on it again (via the single-rider line, most likely, as that seems to be the most efficient way of riding it). The ride benefits greatly from its location, smack dab in the most amazing environment I've ever seen in a theme park. Just as a way of seeing the mountains up close, it's well worth the wait. An E-ticket, without question, and a home run for Disney (though it does seem to break down a lot, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt on that for now).
RADIATOR SPRINGS RACERS VERDICT: FANTASTIC. THE BEST RIDE IN DCA, AND AMONGST THE BEST RIDES IN THE RESORTS. IF YOU'VE NEVER RODE IT BEFORE, I'D SAY IT'S WORTH VIRTUALLY ANY WAIT, AND HAVING RODE IT THREE TIMES ALREADY, I'D BE WILLING TO WAIT 60-90 MINUTES TO RIDE IT AGAIN, EASILY (THOUGH SINGLE RIDER LINE MEANS I'D MOST LIKELY HAVE UNDER AN HOUR WAIT)
So that sums up my feelings on Cars Land. As to Buena Vista Street, I'm actually going to be brief (I know I've said that before, but I mean it this time). I was impressed. It's not as awe-inspiring as Cars Land, not the sort of thing you want to spend hours exploring, but it's exactly what DCA needed. I haven't seen it without the construction walls yet, but it does seem to serve it's purpose, letting you know you are in a very special place.
The trolley was not in service when I was there, it was just parked at its stop. It's nice looking, but frankly didn't wow me. The shops are nice looking, inside and out. I was impressed by Elias and Co., and even more impressed by the interior of the Fiddler, Fife and Practical Cafe (i.e. Starbucks).
Disney did what they needed to do, and fixed the entrance of DCA. For the record, I actually liked the original entrance, or at least the murals. But the Sun Sculpture and the shops, once you got inside the gates, were completely forgettable, and the whole place just lacked a soul. I'm glad they seem to have done it right this time, and I look forward to going back and seeing it all without construction walls.
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