Disneyfied

Warner Bros Theme Park

Warner Bros theme park portrays characteristics of Disneyzation. The most obvious dimension would be theming. Warner bros is a well-known producer of film and television entertainment. They produced an animation called Looney Tunes and DC comics which has become famous world wide. With this, they had created a themed amusement park in Madrid, Spain based on the cartoon characters in Looney Tunes and DC super heroes such as Superman, Tweety etc. With theming, it has brought about change in how visitors perceive the amusement park. Visitors may feel that the theme park is better in terms of quality. Although the thrilling experience should be the main factor in these parks, however for a theme park such as Warner Bros, the design of the rides to suit the theme are more important and concentrated.

Merchandising is the next dimension which can be seen in the theme park itself. Apart from the rides and attractions, Warner Bros uses their logo and cartoon characters to create merchandise. They sell goods such as toy figurines, plush toys, bottles, souvenirs and many more. The parks have strategically located their shops such that after a ride, they will have to go through souvenir shops.  Since sales of merchandise are the most profitable element in a theme park (Bryan, 2004), this creates opportunity for visitors to spend more.

On top of that, emotional labour can be seen in Warner Bros whereby every staff has to be cheerful and friendly to visitors. There are also mascots that portray a certain kind of behaviour to suit the cartoon character. The idea behind it is to provide a kind of perception that Warner Bros theme park is fun and the staff were very helpful and friendly.

Check out for more details : http://www.parquewarner.com/

Port Adventura

Port Adventura is another area near Barcelona which is disneyfied.

Port adventura is said to be theme park however, it portrays itself as a resort that has everything from attractions to accommodation. This brings me to the dimension of hybrid consumption whereby going to a theme park is no longer just to ride the thrilling attractions but to ability to play, dine and shop at one facility. Even golf courses and convention centres are available within the facility. 

The accommodation is not restricted to one but there are various resorts in Port Adventura. All these resorts are themed to suit different preference of the guests. One might be interested to stay in a Mediterranean resort while some may choose others. Another area at which they themed themselves would be the theme park itself. The park has various themes from Mediterrania, Polynesia, China, Mexico and Far West. 

Check out for more details : http://www.portaventura.co.uk/theme-parks

Madrid Xanadu Shopping Centre

Xanadu is one of the largest commercial and leisure center. Within the shopping mall, it has an indoor ski slope that is said to be the largest in Europe. The snow park has a skating rink for beginners and experts. Apart from that, it has a go-kart racing track, bowling alley and a preschool. This proves evidently the hybrid consumption whereby malls no longer just include eating establishments and huge cinemas but even leisure facilities, built within the mall. Even some of the eateries are themed based on cuisine that are served. Two examples would be temple bar which is an irish bar whereas the Istanbul Doner Kebab serves authentic cuisine such as Kebab. And the restaurant is themed of the origin, Istanbul.  

Check out for more details : http://www.madridxanadu.com/


References:
http://www.canyons.edu/Faculty/haugent/Disneyization%20of%20Society%20Article.pdf