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Disney Parks Launches New TV Commercials

Disney Memories - Magic Kingdom at Twilight

A new series of commercials from Disney Parks has hit the airwaves. They position a Disney Parks vacation as a sort of memory factory from which there is a limited time to extract those precious moments. I say it a bit cynically, but that really is the formula that Disney and its research partners have found to work the best.

With a world where economic uncertainty is the one thing that’s for certain, surveys and guests have told Disney that guests are looking to make the one thing that can’t be taken away from them, special family bonds built by time spent together.

As it turns out, Disney is uniquely suited to provide this experience. The Disneyland Resort has received a kickstart with the revitalized California Adventure gate making it a true multi-day destination and the Walt Disney World resort has perfected the art of enveloping you in the magic to such a point that you never have to experience anything non-Disney form the moment you arrive at the airport until your departure. Not quite as good as teleporting your from your kitchen to the Magic Kingdom, but it will have to do until the Imagineers perfect that option.

Follow us below the jump to see the rest of the new commercials, then please let us know which commercial works the best for you and rate the whole campaign from “5 – Great Idea” to “1 – Needs Improvement” in the comments.

Mark & Natalie:

Abuelos:

Lucy:

Well, what did you think?

16 thoughts on “Disney Parks Launches New TV Commercials”

  1. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be the “Lucy” one………..
    I’m not sure I care much for the campaign and would give it a “2” – the one thing I am
    not getting (and maybe I’m just not thinking it through, its been a long week and it’s only Tuesday!) is the statement that they all make, “for a limited time only” – not really getting it or feeling the whole thing at all.

  2. I’m with Michelle. I don’t really get the “for a limited time only” thing. It feels cynical, especially in the Lucy and Jamie ones. I’m not 4 1/2 and I still believe in the Disney magic.

    On the plus side, I thought the “Abuelos” one was actually cute and well-done.

  3. I hate the whole Disney Parks thing and the fact that every single in-park shot is of DL, even in the “Abuelos” Florida one, but seriously? “For a limited” time means that they won’t ways be 14 or 9 or 4 1/2.

  4. I understand the intent of the campaign, but I think the “for a limited time” falls really short. The magic of Disney is not for a limited time, so I think having a commercial that had a more Carpe Diem line would have been more appropriate and relevant. I still want to go to Disney World though….

  5. I loved all of them, I cried! I totally get them all. People always say there is no rush since Disney will always be there but let’s face it, the newlyweds will most likely have kids in a couple of years and will maybe never get to go alone again. The 14 year old will have a job in a couple of years and then go off to college, this may be the last chance for them to all go together. The granparents one is just precious, grandparents need to enjoy every moment with the grandkids. And the 4 1/2 year old will be starting school and things will get so much more busy (not to mention that her classmates will start telling her that Disney is for “babies”) Time flies by, you never know what tomorrow will bring. Do it now!!

  6. I understand what they were going for with “available for a limited time,” (yes, kids grow up way too fast… and yes, every life-stage seems to fly by in retrospect) but I agree with Stitch that it comes across as cynical. After the last couple of years of tearing up during Disney Parks commercials, this campaign leaves me quite dry-eyed.

  7. Like everyone else, I really don’t like the ‘for a limited time only’ line. It makes it seem as if the Mayans are right.

  8. I can’t help it. I even like the commercials when I start wanting to plan the next trip. I just introduced my 4-year-old to Peter Pan this weekend, so Lucy one up there is definitely speaking to me

  9. I agree with Lacee. It made me tear up and was VERY relate-able to the average person. I would give it a 3 teetering on a 4. It’s not my favorite campaign of theirs, but it is effective.

  10. Frankly I like it and I like the “for a limited time”.

    These ads are not targeted to people who read Disney blogs. They are targeted at people who go to WDW (and maybe DL) every 3 or 4 years or once in a lifetime.

    I think they are hoping to get people to go “this holiday” or “next Summer” (2013) rather than the next (2014)….then maybe they can get them to go again in 4 years (2017) rather than a year or two later (2018 or 2019)…and so forth.

    I could be wrong, but that’s what I think they are trying to do. Reduce the number of years between visits.

    I would assume people who read these type of blogs already go once a year (and some much more) or want to go every year. We don’t need our heart strings pulled as we already want to go.

    Personally I really liked the couple one..when I meant my wife I told her that “Disney isn’t a place for kids, they just get in the way”…..she didn’t understand me at the time and because of money we were not able to go to Disney for our Honeymoon…didn’t got for many years later and by then we had kids. I truly wished we could have gone as a couple first….but oh well.

    I give the campaign a 5. :)

    Todd

  11. As a parent, those ads are a punch in the gut. The “for a limited time” line totally works on me. In fact, it makes me think I need to book another Disney vacation as soon as possible before my kids have another birthday and realize I’m a lousy dad.

  12. LOVE the Lucy one – totally spoke to me last night when I saw for the first time. It answers the question we get asked all the time. Why take your kids when they are so young, will they even remember it? DS8 and DD6 have been 5 and 4 times in their lives and each trip is memorable as they go through different phases/interests, but those early years where there is NO question that the magic is real are truly so very magical for Mom and Dad. They are right on and it is the fleeting years of our kids that are bittersweet as they go by.

    LOVE the “you and Lucy at 4-1/2, for a limited time only” Could not be more true.

  13. Pingback: Catch it before it ‘glows’ away – Limited Time Magic is Disney Parks next promotion | The Disney Blog

  14. There’s a longer version of the Florida one on TV now…

    Is anyone else frustrated that they filmed at LAX pretending its OIA, and all but one shot is DL?

    If only Disney had a film studio in Orlando!

  15. I don’t think “For a limited time only” refers to the Disney Parks. To me it refers to the time your child is 4 1/2 or 14 or whatever. I agree with this. Some of the best memories of my life were made with my three girls in WDW and they know exactly how old they were during each visit!

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