News Disney CFO Hugh Johnston Says Dynamic Pricing Is Coming to the Parks

[monothingie]

Not trying to be rude, just trying to understand. You felt like a sucker because you chose to buy food and merch? I don’t see how that nickel and diming anyone.

I’ll explain so even you understand.

I feel like a sucker for after reflecting on my experience going around the various multiple kiosks and spending money on overpriced, sampler portions and drinks.

 

[Jrb1979]

I’ll explain so even you understand.

I feel like a sucker for after reflecting on my experience going around the various multiple kiosks and spending money on overpriced, sampler portions and drinks.

To add on to that. IMO that's something Dollywood does better in terms of pricing. For $45 a person you get a ticket book to try 6 festival items. You don't feel as ripped off.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I see turkey lurkey is out defending the shield today

 

[Disstevefan1]

I see turkey lurkey is out defending the shield today

This made me wonder, will the turkey legs be dynamically priced?

 

[John park hopper]

This made me wonder, will the turkey legs be dynamically priced?

Yes the turkeys will be paid more for their legs depending on demand

 

[donaldtoo]

This made me wonder, will the turkey legs be dynamically priced?

Yes. And their size and quality will be adjusted accordingly.

 

[Chi84]

People going multiple times per year, which I would assume the general populace of this board overly represents, end up devaluing the whole of the experience. No matter how good the Haunted Mansion is, there are only so many times you can go on it before the effective value of a ride becomes $0.

This is a point I tried to make in another thread but it was misconstrued as shaming frequent visitors. You articulated it much better here.

There’s also the old adage that familiarity breeds contempt.

 

[Jrb1979]

As far as the tickets go, I was pricing out a trip for my wife daughter and i for February. We can stay on International Dr at the Holiday Inn including for half of the price 4 park base tickets for the 3 of us.

 

[Jrb1979]

This is a point I tried to make in another thread but it was misconstrued as shaming frequent visitors. You articulated it much better here.

There’s also the old adage that familiarity breeds contempt.

That's the thing, Disney is built on frequent visitors. Ones that go once or twice a year. Why else would they have DVC? They can't survive on that family from Denver that goes once every 5 years.

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

Disney targets higher income guests is so far from what Walt Disney's target guests were SAD. Baby boomers grew up with Disney they took their kids to WDW those kids are not the big fans as their parents. Those kids now have kids -boomers grand kids and they have even less Disney devotion. This is my story and IMO is shared by many. Disney's answer to this rise prices in order to satisfy stock holders IMO it won't last

So true, it's our family story too. I took my kids (I'm a babyboomer), and then took our grandkids later on.
We haven't been since 2020 right as covid started. Since then we have had no interest due to certain changes, etc.
We haven't offered to take the kids/grands and they have not asked.
I think Disney missed the boat with their image to kids now. When I was younger, I used to watch WWofD and other disney related shows. There was no internet at that time! So it was tv or the movies. We were immersed in Disney as kids and wished we could go one day. My parents couldn't afford it when we were young, so I always had that wish. We were lucky enough to be able to go as adults and to take our kids. We went every year, or more, and were the ones who gave help with everything Disney to others. Other adults wondered why we only vacationed at Disney and couldn't understand it. We told them that we loved it - the atmosphere, the CM's, the way you were treated as being valuable and wanted. Then things changed, for us. I know other's don't feel that way and I am glad they still love WDW.
My grand kids and their young children have had no desire to go back to WDW, at all. They have gone to Universal a couple of time and loved the atmosphere and offerings there, and other theme parks and state parks.
So, what I'm trying to say is that IF we had kept going to Disney, loving it, and going with family, the kids/grands would have continued that habit. Now there are so many other venues for the kids/teens, and most of those are not Disney.
So our generations of being a loyal Disney family is over, and I doubt they will be back. We won't and they seem to have No interest in WDW anymore, due to a lot of reasons. I fear that this is happening to alot of families who will not carry on the tradition of vacationing at WDW. Will that affect them in the long run? I'm not sure but believe it will to some extent.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

This made me wonder, will the turkey legs be dynamically priced?

No…but they’re gonna sell dude wipes that you’ll need after you eat one and those will be “surge” for sure

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

That's the thing, Disney is built on frequent visitors. Ones that go once or twice a year. Why else would they have DVC? They can't survive on that family from Denver that goes once every 5 years.

Only self important fools don’t get this at this point

The backbone client is the multigenerational frequenters…from Florida, the northeast and upper Midwest, Canada and the UK…

It’s not the seldoms who breeze by every few years and think it’s great because they can’t remember what it looked like the last time

 

[Mike S]

So true, it's our family story too. I took my kids (I'm a babyboomer), and then took our grandkids later on.
We haven't been since 2020 right as covid started. Since then we have had no interest due to certain changes, etc.
We haven't offered to take the kids/grands and they have not asked.
I think Disney missed the boat with their image to kids now. When I was younger, I used to watch WWofD and other disney related shows. There was no internet at that time! So it was tv or the movies. We were immersed in Disney as kids and wished we could go one day. My parents couldn't afford it when we were young, so I always had that wish. We were lucky enough to be able to go as adults and to take our kids. We went every year, or more, and were the ones who gave help with everything Disney to others. Other adults wondered why we only vacationed at Disney and couldn't understand it. We told them that we loved it - the atmosphere, the CM's, the way you were treated as being valuable and wanted. Then things changed, for us. I know other's don't feel that way and I am glad they still love WDW.
My grand kids and their young children have had no desire to go back to WDW, at all. They have gone to Universal a couple of time and loved the atmosphere and offerings there, and other theme parks and state parks.
So, what I'm trying to say is that IF we had kept going to Disney, loving it, and going with family, the kids/grands would have continued that habit. Now there are so many other venues for the kids/teens, and most of those are not Disney.
So our generations of being a loyal Disney family is over, and I doubt they will be back. We won't and they seem to have No interest in WDW anymore, due to a lot of reasons. I fear that this is happening to alot of families who will not carry on the tradition of vacationing at WDW. Will that affect them in the long run? I'm not sure but believe it will to some extent.

I don’t have kids yet but I know for a fact I won’t take them to Disney nearly as much as I was taken as a kid. Part of it price, bigger part being the complete disappearance of things I’d be able to point to and say “I rode this when I was your age.” What exactly will I be sharing, just Pirates and Haunted Mansion?

 

[Chi84]

That's the thing, Disney is built on frequent visitors. Ones that go once or twice a year. Why else would they have DVC? They can't survive on that family from Denver that goes once every 5 years.

That’s true and it’s probably why they feel changing some things is necessary. We own DVC but go to WDW every two years now, alternating with cruises.

There are those who visit even more frequently than once or twice a year. From what I’ve seen they tend to be more critical of Disney than less frequent visitors. That makes sense to me.

 

[MisterPenguin]

This made me wonder, will the turkey legs be dynamically priced?

We're waiting for someone who's experienced Paris's dynamic pricing to see if it applied to food or not.

Probably not since that means changing the prices of every food item on every menu both in the MDE app and at the PoS day to day (or hour to hour).

I don't think we'll find a cupcake behind a display window with a tiny screen in front of it where we can watch the price change every 5 seconds.

 

[Mike S]

We're waiting for someone who's experienced Paris's dynamic pricing to see if it applied to food or not.

Probably not since that means changing the prices of every food item on every menu both in the MDE app and at the PoS day to day (or hour to hour).

I don't think we'll find a cupcake behind a display window with a tiny screen in front of it where we can watch the price change every 5 seconds.

It’s never not funny reading the abbreviation for “Point of Sale” in the other way. It nearly always still fits as well.

 

[Jrb1979]

We're waiting for someone who's experienced Paris's dynamic pricing to see if it applied to food or not.

Probably not since that means changing the prices of every food item on every menu both in the MDE app and at the PoS day to day (or hour to hour).

I don't think we'll find a cupcake behind a display window with a tiny screen in front of it where we can watch the price change every 5 seconds.

I don't think it will minute by minute change but I could see a daily change depending on crowd level. That IMO is bad way to run things.
This is all to keep those profits improving each quarter.

 

[MisterPenguin]

That IMO is bad way to run things.

I agree... if it will be the case.

 

[John park hopper]

Yes. And their size and quality will be adjusted accordingly.

but the turkeys will be able to afford crutches

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

Well you certainly can plan on paying more...

I'll show myself out.

And yet your time is so meaningless that you keep on coming to a message board and posting about it.