of the six Disney resorts to have little room for expansion. The solution to open this attraction in the park was to replace an existing attraction with this new ride. Fantasyland was ruled out because it contained the least amount of available space and because of the age of its buildings; park managers anticipated that the attraction would be popular and decided to place it in an area that could better accommodate the crowds. Critter Country, a small parcel between New Orleans Square and Frontierland, was ultimately chosen since Winnie the Pooh already had his own greeting area in that land. The area already featured two attractions, Splash Mountain and Country Bear Jamboree, the latter being the first attraction to open in the land (then Bear Country) in 1972. Imagineers chose to replace the Country Bear Jamboree with Pooh due to its lack of popularity and a proposal for a new Country Bear racing attraction called the "Critter Country 500" being rejected by management. This required major excavation for space and leveling for the ride. When news of the former attraction's demise broke, many fans were once more upset at the loss of another classic attraction and again sought to change the park managers' minds. However, management decided to continue as planned. As a tribute, the heads of Max the deer, Melvin the moose and Buff the buffalo are mounted in the wall inside the ride. The budget for the attraction was set at a reported $30 million, most of it dedicated to reformatting the Country Bear Jamboree show building. When it finally opened in 2003, it received large promotions by park management and lines were somewhat long at first, but quickly dropped off. Disneyland was planning to have a media event scheduled for April 11, 2003, but on April 2, the park announced that it would be canceled. Its turnover rate with guests was low compared to older dark rides in Fantasyland, with shorter wait times than comparable Fantasyland attractions, even on busy days. Those critical of this ride point to the shorter wait times as evidence that the ride is not as well-liked as other classic dark rides, though the ride's much higher capacity compared to other Fantasyland attractions makes wait times a questionable indicator. Another common complaint is that the ride was seemingly created to funnel guests into a gift shop, as the ride exits next to