It may be called “Characters in Flight” but the characters have disappeared from the design of the new aerial balloon at Disney Springs. The new look is a big blue globe with watery flourish designs and stripes similar to what was on the previous balloon, just without the characters.
The balloon is operated by Aerophile, which operates a number of similar attractions around the world, including at Disneyland Paris. The one at Disney Springs soars up to 400 ft high and carries up to 29 guests with its 210,000 cubic feet of helium.
It’s a known fact about giant helium balloons, they need to be replaced every few years due to normal wear and tear. That means we get a new design.
The original balloon had silhouettes of Disney characters known for their flying, while version 2.0 was more art nouveau and had a few characters known for their flying.
The change in design was rumored to help it fit in better with the Disney Springs back story, but given how similar it is to the most recent balloon, just without characters, one wonders what they were thinking.
Since the new balloon lacks ‘character’ one has to wonder if a name change is coming after the new balloon. It looks like the ‘ticket booth’ for the attraction is also getting a new look. So a name change may indeed be coming soon.
Will be harder to spot from a distance.
Agreed. Not sure if that was intentional.
Hopefully it won’t stick out quite so much over the China pavilion when you’re looking across the WS lagoon! I love the balloon ride, but didn’t like the sight line it caused in Epcot.
I love it.
I prefer the one with the Characters. That made it unique and is about what I go to WDW for.
Comments are closed.