One thing Disney could learn from Seaworld

[donsullivan]

Ignoring those who choose to derail yet another thread. WDW did for a while have a couple of Annual Passholder Lounges but they didn't last long. One of them was in the area above the Garden Grille Restaurant in the Land Pavillion at Epcot. It was a nice quiet place where you could sit and relax in the A/C, grab a small cold drink (think Club Cool size, or maybe a tiny bit larger) and maybe a cookie or two. They had another one at AK but I never had the opportunity to experience that one.

Unfortunately, so many guests aggressively abused this they didn't last very long. I personally saw people taking an entire tray of cookies and dump into their bag to take with them, leaving none for anyone else. Or the time that someone dumped the water out of and filled 3 water bottles with soda out of the small size soda dispenser they had. She just kept pressing the button over and over and over until each one was full. When A CM called her out on it, she just said, it's free isn't it and kept filling them? Or the child (~10) who just kept pressing the button on the soda dispenser well after his cup was full, over and over until the cup overflowed and then the tray overflowed onto the floor with no reaction from parents at all. While I fully acknowledge these are just my anecdotal experiences while visiting there, I think it's reasonable to assume they are not isolated cases of the experiences in those lounges.

Yet again, our 'culture of entitlement' ruined a nice quiet get-away and they were shut down.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

There is a reason that SeaWorld treats it's AP holders so well.

They have to.

Unlike WDW, they don't have legions of people coming from all over the world willing to pay darn near full price to visit the parks, stay at their resorts and eat in their restaurants.

Bingo. It's not so much "appreciation" as advertising and doing whatever they can to drum up business.

Comcast and Disney are clocking in with record attendance at their Florida theme parks, so the need to bend over backwards isn't urgent. However, it's a safe bet that Disney and Universal Orlando pass holders would love to see those parks finally rip a page out of the SeaWorld Orlando playbook instead.

I'm sure Disney passholders would indeed love it if Disney lowered prices or offered perks, but as the article points out, they don't have to.

This article is actually kind of stupid. How about "1 Thing that DisneyWorld could teach Seaworld: offering a product that people will pay to experience without the need for extensive discounts or promotions".

 

[rucifee]

Yet again, our 'culture of entitlement' ruined a nice quiet get-away and they were shut down.

Disney could crack down on the abusers, but it looks better on a balance sheet to take it away from everyone.

 

[donsullivan]

Disney could crack down on the abusers, but it looks better on a balance sheet to take it away from everyone.

While I don't disagree they could take that approach, they'd get raked over the coals for that as well. Just imagine the cries across the Internet if Disney dared to make something 'free' and then put 'limits' on it. It's kind of a no win for Disney in the currently Internet connected world. No matter what they do, someone would try to vilify for them for it.

 

[rucifee]

While I don't disagree they could take that approach, they'd get raked over the coals for that as well. Just imagine the cries across the Internet if Disney dared to make something 'free' and then put 'limits' on it. It's kind of a no win for Disney in the currently Internet connected world. No matter what they do, someone would try to vilify for them for it.

I dunno, they're really good at spin. I'm sure they could dress it up like they're doing you a favor to escort you out with a lifetime ban.

It would be pretty simple to manage the problem though, post rules, provide one warning, then banned! Disable access by a flag linked to your MB serial number. Don't even need to boot them out of the park, just disable their access to the AP area.

Then again, I've seen people filling up their water bottles with soda at the QS restaurants at Animal Kingdom. People are going to abuse anything given the opportunity. Doing nothing about it is why everyone (without proper morals) thinks it's ok.

 

[halltd]

Offenders can be curbed by not making things self-serve. But, that requires CMs which cost money. I went into the American Adventure Chase lounge the other day with a friend and got A free drink (yes, just one). They handed out a little card on the way in and you handed that to the CM who was distributing drinks. It worked perfectly fine. But, that process required at least four CMs.

I have to say that Sea World lounge looks amazing, though. The Chase lounge was really bad as far as execution went. To start, you entered through a BOH stairwell which was not pretty. Then, the lounge itself was covered in obviously temporary signs, etc... It just all seemed very cheap to me. I'm of the thought of "do it right or don't do it", but I know things are different now. It was still a nice little perk for a free drink, but I could have done without it as well.

That SeaWorld lounge, though? I'd totally go there!

 

[mergatroid]

Are you going to boycott all Zoo's too? Thousands of Zoo's doing worse to animals than Sea World, but CNN didn't want to tell that story, they were gunning for Sea World.

You might want to give the articles linked below a read. In short, if all you are basing your opinion on is the movie "Blackfish", your opinion will be woefully misinformed. Not unlike most documentaries these days the makers of Blackfish started with the conclusion and edited the data to fit it.


https://skeptoid.com/blog/2014/04/23/blackfish-documentary-or-propaganda/

https://cetaceaninspiration.wordpress.com/2014/01/16/why-you-shouldnt-buy-the-blackfish-backlash/

Will happily read those sites later on however the op has clearly stated he doesn't want this thread to go in this direction, I think we should respect his wishes.

 

[GrumpyFan]

There is a reason that SeaWorld treats it's AP holders so well.

They have to.

Unlike WDW, they don't have legions of people coming from all over the world willing to pay darn near full price to visit the parks, stay at their resorts and eat in their restaurants.

There's a lot of truth there. But, I think the point I was trying to highlight, was that SeaWorld actually values their AP holders.
Sure, "they have to", because they're probably a big portion of who's helping them stay alive right now. But I think businesses who choose to "treat" their customers, tend to do better in the long run. But then, I get it, Disney isn't hurting for business nor money, so there's really no incentive for them to go the extra mile, because their most loyal fans just keep coming back, regardless of how they're treated or how expensive it gets.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

There's a lot of truth there. But, I think the point I was trying to highlight, was that SeaWorld actually values their AP holders.
Sure, "they have to", because they're probably a big portion of who's helping them stay alive right now. But I think businesses who choose to "treat" their customers, tend to do better in the long run. But then, I get it, Disney isn't hurting for business nor money, so there's really no incentive for them to go the extra mile, because their most loyal fans just keep coming back, regardless of how they're treated or how expensive it gets.

A business should value all of their customers, and treat them all well. Disney passholders get access to the theme parks at a really good price, and get discounts on top of that. What more should they get?

As a non-local, when I see Disneyland doing one of their after-hours passholder events, my reaction is likely to be negative - why can't I stay in the park longer too?

The more a park caters to locals, the less likely I am to want to go and spend full price for a day's admission.

 

[rucifee]

A business should value all of their customers, and treat them all well. Disney passholders get access to the theme parks at a really good price, and get discounts on top of that. What more should they get?

As a non-local, when I see Disneyland doing one of their after-hours passholder events, my reaction is likely to be negative - why can't I stay in the park longer too?

The more a park caters to locals, the less likely I am to want to go and spend full price for a day's admission.

Disney passholders don't get access to the parks at a really good price anymore. We also hardly get any discounts. 10% on a $32 t-shirt is not a deal, especially when you can get 20% off of a $21 t-shirt at SeaWorld.

The more a park caters to locals the less likely you're going to want to spend full price on admission? Uhh, sounds good to me.

 

[Master Yoda]

There's a lot of truth there. But, I think the point I was trying to highlight, was that SeaWorld actually values their AP holders.
Sure, "they have to", because they're probably a big portion of who's helping them stay alive right now. But I think businesses who choose to "treat" their customers, tend to do better in the long run. But then, I get it, Disney isn't hurting for business nor money, so there's really no incentive for them to go the extra mile, because their most loyal fans just keep coming back, regardless of how they're treated or how expensive it gets.

It is always a delicate balance. Every business seems to have those customers who's demands are extreme, loyalty is solid but their profit margin is very low. The point at which you stop killing yourself to please that one customer at the expense of multiple better ones is always a hard question to answer.

Quite a few AP holders have a serious entitlement mentality. It is a lot easier to deal with that when business is slow and they are helping to keep the light on. Not so much when you have thousands of these guys at the gates every morning...

 

[rucifee]

It is always a delicate balance. Every business seems to have those customers who's demands are extreme, loyalty is solid but their profit margin is very low. The point at which you stop killing yourself to please that one customer at the expense of multiple better ones is always a hard question to answer.

Quite a few AP holders have a serious entitlement mentality. It is a lot easier to deal with that when business is slow and they are helping to keep the light on. Not so much when you have thousands of these guys at the gates every morning...

On one hand, you can't blame them. After all, our state has given TWDC land, significant tax breaks, we provide emergency services to them, and we've given them all sorts of other benefits to do business here. Now they're turning the screw on the very people that helped make them successful in our state. Maybe we should vote to turn all of their freebies off. I mean, they have thousands of people at the gates every morning and they're not really giving us any reason to support them anymore other than sales tax income.

It's not an entitlement mentality to expect someone who's back you've scratched for 50 years to scratch yours when it itches.

You're right, there is some entitlement mentality, but it's not that significant IMHO.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

Disney passholders don't get access to the parks at a really good price anymore. We also hardly get any discounts. 10% on a $32 t-shirt is not a deal, especially when you can get 20% off of a $21 t-shirt at SeaWorld.

The more a park caters to locals the less likely you're going to want to spend full price on admission? Uhh, sounds good to me.

Unlimited Disneyland access is a great deal, even at current AP prices. A tourist will pay more to visit for 5 days, once you factor in flight, hotel, etc. Locals who complain that they have to pay $1000 to go to Disneyland as often as they want, don't appreciate how fortunate they are.

10% off is still more than a tourist gets. SeaWorld is cheaper because it's SeaWorld. There's a reason Disney can charge more than everyone else, and still attract the most customers.

Be careful what you wish for. Disney relies on both types of visitor for revenue. Alienate either and there's potentially less money for new additions.

 

[rucifee]

Unlimited Disneyland access is a great deal, even at current AP prices. A tourist will pay more to visit for 5 days, once you factor in flight, hotel, etc. Locals who complain that they have to pay $1000 to go to Disneyland as often as they want, don't appreciate how fortunate they are.

10% off is still more than a tourist gets. SeaWorld is cheaper because it's SeaWorld. There's a reason Disney can charge more than everyone else, and still attract the most customers.

Be careful what you wish for. Disney relies on both types of visitor for revenue. Alienate either and there's potentially less money for new additions.

They don't appreciate how fortunate they are to give TWDC money? 10% off is more than a tourist gets (which is not true, tourists with a Disney VISA also get 10% off) so that makes it a good thing? Disney is doing a fine job of alienating one type of visitor, but nice job pointing it out. lmao

Do you work for TWDC, you sound like someone I've spoken to at Guest Relations.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

They don't appreciate how fortunate they are to give TWDC money? 10% off is more than a tourist gets (which is not true, tourists with a Disney VISA also get 10% off) so that makes it a good thing? Disney is doing a fine job of alienating one type of visitor, but nice job pointing it out. lmao

Do you work for TWDC, you sound like someone I've spoken to at Guest Relations.

Really? Do I really have to point out that not every tourist has a Disney VISA? Many, if not most, tourists get no discount on food and merchandise.

Locals are fortunate to get a year's access to Disneyland for less than the price a tourist would pay to visit for a week or less. No one is forcing them to give Disney their money. The alternative is paying $100 every time they want to visit. For all the griping over AP prices, the griping that would occur if they were eliminated would be ten times louder.

Ah, the dismissive comment that anyone who disagrees with you or is fine with Disney's prices is just an employee of the company.

 

[rucifee]

Really? Do I really have to point out that not every tourist has a Disney VISA? Many, if not most, tourists get no discount on food and merchandise.

They are fortunate to get a year's access to Disneyland for less than the price a tourist would pay to visit for a week or less. No one is forcing them to give Disney their money. The alternative is paying $100 every time they want to visit. For all the griping over AP prices, the griping that would occur if they were eliminated would be ten times louder.

Ah, the dismissive comment that anyone who disagrees with you or is fine with Disney's prices is just an employee of the company.

Funny story, those tourists do tend to get discounts on their rooms or free dining and those discounts usually work out to far more than 10%. You realize you've defeated your own argument there right? If you're paying $100 per visit, and you visit for 7 days, you've spent $700. The annual pass you mention is not $700. In dismissing my question about employment with TWDC, you've answered it.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

Funny story, those tourists do tend to get discounts on their rooms or free dining and those discounts usually work out to far more than 10%. You realize you've defeated your own argument there right? If you're paying $100 per visit, and you visit for 7 days, you've spent $700. The annual pass you mention is not $700. In dismissing my question about employment with TWDC, you've answered it.

7 x $100 does indeed = $700. Congratulations on your math skills. This has nothing to do with the argument that a year's admission to Disneyland for $1049 (at the highest level) is a great deal for a frequent visitor. Locals are lucky to have the option. There is no admission discount a tourist would ever get that would exceed what a local gets. They will always get the best deal.

No, declining to respond to a condescending question about employment does not mean you get to make up the answer.

 

[rucifee]

7 x $100 does indeed = $700. Congratulations on your math skills. This has nothing to do with the argument that a year's admission to Disneyland for $1049 (at the highest level) is a great deal for a frequent visitor. Locals are lucky to have the option. There is no admission discount a tourist would ever get that would exceed what a local gets. They will always get the best deal.

No, declining to respond to a condescending question about employment does not mean you get to make up the answer.

Sure it does, you said "They are fortunate to get a year's access to Disneyland for less than the price a tourist would pay to visit for a week or less" but don't let the facts get in the way. Oh, are you now limiting discounts to admission when I was talking about discounts in general? Is that how you'll "win" the conversation, by moving the goal post? Asking a question isn't condescending, you can try to change the direction of the conversation so you can start reporting it but it's not going to work.

Fact, we were talking about SeaWorld vs Disney World before you changed the conversation to be about "Disneyland".

Fact, you said "They are fortunate to get a year's access to Disneyland for less than the price a tourist would pay to visit for a week or less", but the cost of 7 days of admission to "Disney Land" is far less than the purchase price of the annual pass to that park that you've mentioned.

Fact, Disney World tourists get room discounts, free dining, and better ticket pricing with bundle purchase. Fact, these discounts are orders of magnitude greater than what us locals get.

I think you're trying to "win" so hard that you're not even paying attention to what you're saying.

Fact, that makes me lol.

 

[mergatroid]

As Disney Annual Pass holders we get a number of perks. Obviously free parking along with discounts on purchases and recreational activities and invites to things like the Osbourne lights before none holders get to see them. I'm not sure of Seaworld's perks on top of this lounge though are they similar?

One thing Seaworld did well when we used to go was let us in for half price, two for one. This was on the grounds of me having dystonia. One visit I handed over my $120 (?) for two of us and was given half back. When I asked why the lady politely said "I see you have disability sir so we can class your wife as a carer for you so she gets in free, I hope I'm not being too forward". Credit where it's due, that was a nice policy of theirs.

 

[rucifee]

As Disney Annual Pass holders we get a number of perks. Obviously free parking along with discounts on purchases and recreational activities and invites to things like the Osbourne lights before none holders get to see them. I'm not sure of Seaworld's perks on top of this lounge though are they similar?

One thing Seaworld did well when we used to go was let us in for half price, two for one. This was on the grounds of me having dystonia. One visit I handed over my $120 (?) for two of us and was given half back. When I asked why the lady politely said "I see you have disability sir so we can class your wife as a carer for you so she gets in free, I hope I'm not being too forward". Credit where it's due, that was a nice policy of theirs.

You get a significant amount of perks and discounts, a lot more than you get with Disney's AP.

For example, 50% off of guest tickets. I can buy tickets for 6 people for $48 each. Several times they've run promotions where you can bring a friend for free. My kids took a friend each multiple times this year using it.

30% off of tours, big discounts on food and merchandise. I bought the all day dining for $21 per person recently with the discount and a coupon. Yes you can stack them.

Here are 50 reasons.

http://seaworldparks.com/en/seaworld-orlando/pages/50reasons/

Other benefits:

http://seaworldparks.com/en/seaworld-orlando/passmembers/benefits/valuable-benefits/

Did I mention that they're doing a black friday special, buy one AP get one free. I paid less than $400 for my APs this year for four people using a similar deal.

You also get free parking.