Are all Park Hopper Tickets the same?

MissViv

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Do all Park Hopper Tickets have to be used within 14 days of first use? You used to be able to buy Park Hopper Tickets and use them a year later.

We are traveling to WDW this next week and bought a 3 day Magic Your Way ticket and we are now returning in July. These tickets will have to be used for this week. Can we exchange these tickets and pay the difference for a 6 Day Park Hopper Ticket that can be used for both this week and in July or is there no such ticket?
 

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
Do all Park Hopper Tickets have to be used within 14 days of first use? You used to be able to buy Park Hopper Tickets and use them a year later.

We are traveling to WDW this next week and bought a 3 day Magic Your Way ticket and we are now returning in July. These tickets will have to be used for this week. Can we exchange these tickets and pay the difference for a 6 Day Park Hopper Ticket that can be used for both this week and in July or is there no such ticket?
They no longer sell non-expiration tickets. You used to be able to use them until you used them up no matter how much time went by. Years and years if necessary. Now all tickets expire (other then AP's) 14 days from the first usage.

Bummed me out too, because as a single buyer, I always bought a 10 day, which gave me a quantity discount and I used it a few days at a time. That 10 day would give me 3 or 4 trips where I spent more money on meals and other stuff over time. Now I can only buy what I need for that one trip and have no real incentive to go back quickly or over time. I lost a lot of flexibility and therefore a lot of desire to even go there. I guess they win in one way, I have to pay a higher per day admission, but, the number of days that I will go will be a lot less now. I guess I spent to much time there anyway.
 

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
They no longer sell non-expiration tickets. You used to be able to use them until you used them up no matter how much time went by. Years and years if necessary. Now all tickets expire (other then AP's) 14 days from the first usage.

Bummed me out too, because as a single buyer, I always bought a 10 day, which gave me a quantity discount and I used it a few days at a time. That 10 day would give me 3 or 4 trips where I spent more money on meals and other stuff over time. Now I can only buy what I need for that one trip and have no real incentive to go back quickly or over time. I lost a lot of flexibility and therefore a lot of desire to even go there. I guess they win in one way, I have to pay a higher per day admission, but, the number of days that I will go will be a lot less now. I guess I spent to much time there anyway.
That's exactly why they stopped offering them. It was always a bad business decision to offer no expiration because people could use them 10 years later when costs rose.
 

MissViv

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thanks for the replies. I emailed Undercover Tourist right after posting this thread and they confirmed the same. Oh well, we'll see how this visit goes (3 days at parks). When we were younger, we were at the parks from opening to closing but we can't do that anymore.

When we go back in July, we may just go to MK one day or get a 2 day park hopper pass. It will be so crowded and HOT I am sure.
 

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
That's exactly why they stopped offering them. It was always a bad business decision to offer no expiration because people could use them 10 years later when costs rose.
I'm sorry, but, I have been going there for a lot of years and because of the no expiration I went back again and again. Each time I went back I spent money not to mention that they had my money to use to create profit for whatever time it took me to use it up. Much like a savings account does (or at least used too). I am 600 miles away. I could drive there in a day, do my thing for whatever number of days I felt like and have days left over to go again, once more spending more money at a latter date. If, I were going to go the same number of times regardless, then that is where the income comes in. However, I and many others do not. I don't want to have to commit to a specific number of days or lose them. I like a eclectic number of experiences and they don't all include a mouse. So, what is going to happen is this. I am not going to be going anywhere near as often as I did. If I have to buy new every time I go, I just don't want to go anymore. If it do I will pay the 100 bucks for a one day admission instead of the $600.+ I used to pay for my longer ticket and I was always taking the chance that I might not be able to use them ever and Disney could keep the change. That, for Disney, is once again very short range thinking and does nothing to ensure continued success or reward loyalty. They basically lose over all. I know it doesn't seem to be a problem right now, but, I'm pretty sure it will bite them in the butt before long.

I am retired and have a lot of free time, but, I don't want to commit to an AP that has to be used in a year. I have other things I want to see and do. What used to be incentive for me, no longer exists, so hello other things and good luck Disney. You can milk the public just so long before they run dry.
 

UncleFastpass

Active Member
I'm sorry, but, I have been going there for a lot of years and because of the no expiration I went back again and again. Each time I went back I spent money not to mention that they had my money to use to create profit for whatever time it took me to use it up. Much like a savings account does (or at least used too). I am 600 miles away. I could drive there in a day, do my thing for whatever number of days I felt like and have days left over to go again, once more spending more money at a latter date. If, I were going to go the same number of times regardless, then that is where the income comes in. However, I and many others do not. I don't want to have to commit to a specific number of days or lose them. I like a eclectic number of experiences and they don't all include a mouse. So, what is going to happen is this. I am not going to be going anywhere near as often as I did. If I have to buy new every time I go, I just don't want to go anymore. If it do I will pay the 100 bucks for a one day admission instead of the $600.+ I used to pay for my longer ticket and I was always taking the chance that I might not be able to use them ever and Disney could keep the change. That, for Disney, is once again very short range thinking and does nothing to ensure continued success or reward loyalty. They basically lose over all. I know it doesn't seem to be a problem right now, but, I'm pretty sure it will bite them in the butt before long.

I am retired and have a lot of free time, but, I don't want to commit to an AP that has to be used in a year. I have other things I want to see and do. What used to be incentive for me, no longer exists, so hello other things and good luck Disney. You can milk the public just so long before they run dry.
couldn't it be a crowd cotrol thing?when tickets never expired there were actually times you could go to the parks with light crowds. Now there are few if any times it isn't really crowded. So if you had thousands and thousands of never expiring tickets wouldn't that exacerbate the problem. Now Disney knows basically how many passes are out there for any given period of time.
 
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Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
couldn't it be a crowd cotrol thing?when tickets never expired there were actually times you could go to the parks with light crowds. Now there are few if any times it isn't really crowded. So if you had thousands and thousands of never expiring tickets wouldn't that exacerbate the problem. Now Disney knows basically how many passes are out there for any given period of time.
No, before, they had FP+ they had no real solid way to determine crowd levels on any given day. Just past attendance records which are helpful, but, far from exact. It was strictly what was mentioned a, live for today, cash grab. Let's not give anyone a break and allow anyone to get anything that even slightly resembles a deal. They still run the risk of selling tickets that will in many ways be worth more years from now if they buy them and then don't use them right away. So advance sales are still possible, but, less likely. Even before they eliminated them the non-expiration tickets pretty much doubled the cost of an expirational 10 day for example. What was $300.00+ for a straight 10 days (within 14) was double that for non- expiration ticket or $600.00+. That still brought the cost of a park hopper down to about $60.00 per day. A substantial savings over time. They basically gained double the revenue for the same number of days. The difference, they were spread out and they had to keep accounting records for them. I understand that it is easier for them not to have them, but, for many of us, it was a game changer in the negative.
 

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
I'm sorry, but, I have been going there for a lot of years and because of the no expiration I went back again and again. Each time I went back I spent money not to mention that they had my money to use to create profit for whatever time it took me to use it up. Much like a savings account does (or at least used too). I am 600 miles away. I could drive there in a day, do my thing for whatever number of days I felt like and have days left over to go again, once more spending more money at a latter date. If, I were going to go the same number of times regardless, then that is where the income comes in. However, I and many others do not. I don't want to have to commit to a specific number of days or lose them. I like a eclectic number of experiences and they don't all include a mouse. So, what is going to happen is this. I am not going to be going anywhere near as often as I did. If I have to buy new every time I go, I just don't want to go anymore. If it do I will pay the 100 bucks for a one day admission instead of the $600.+ I used to pay for my longer ticket and I was always taking the chance that I might not be able to use them ever and Disney could keep the change. That, for Disney, is once again very short range thinking and does nothing to ensure continued success or reward loyalty. They basically lose over all. I know it doesn't seem to be a problem right now, but, I'm pretty sure it will bite them in the butt before long.

I am retired and have a lot of free time, but, I don't want to commit to an AP that has to be used in a year. I have other things I want to see and do. What used to be incentive for me, no longer exists, so hello other things and good luck Disney. You can milk the public just so long before they run dry.
It's harder to plan crowd volume and like I said, they want the control of not allowing you to pay 1980s ticket prices in 2016.
 

21stamps

Well-Known Member
It's harder to plan crowd volume and like I said, they want the control of not allowing you to pay 1980s ticket prices in 2016.
My parents gave me and my siblings 20 3 day non expiring tickets each when we became adults.
They purchased extras every year that we went..saved some for us kids. Mine were all from the 80s and 90s lol.

I have 2 days left..been hanging on to those last 2 for awhile, won't use them this year either.

I think the Internet may have had something to do with the end of non expiring tickets. Just a guess, but it would make sense.
 

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
It's harder to plan crowd volume and like I said, they want the control of not allowing you to pay 1980s ticket prices in 2016.
So, just for laughs and giggles what exactly do you pay 1980 prices for today? The increase in prices for a luxury item has increase massively over the years, not just Disney. Even things that in our world are no longer considered luxury but necessities, like an automobile, have made it into astronomical catagorys. I bought a brand new Buick in 1971 for $3100.00, see how many new Buicks you can buy today for less then $40,000.00. You may be walking for a while looking. The whole higher price thing is there because we, the consumer are willing to pay it. If we weren't one of two things would have happened. Either it would still be at 80's prices or there would be a huge empty lot there where a theme park used to be. Reality 101.
 

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
My parents gave me and my siblings 20 3 day non expiring tickets each when we became adults.
They purchased extras every year that we went..saved some for us kids. Mine were all from the 80s and 90s lol.

I have 2 days left..been hanging on to those last 2 for awhile, won't use them this year either.

I think the Internet may have had something to do with the end of non expiring tickets. Just a guess, but it would make sense.
Lol, it's awesome for you guys...but I'm sure Disney is having meetings that consistently ask, "So how many of those non-expiring tickets are still out there?" In business, anything without a limit, expiration, etc is subject to a lot of unnecessary risk....so you see it less and less.
 

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
So, just for laughs and giggles what exactly do you pay 1980 prices for today? The increase in prices for a luxury item has increase massively over the years, not just Disney. Even things that in our world are no longer considered luxury but necessities, like an automobile, have made it into astronomical catagorys. I bought a brand new Buick in 1971 for $3100.00, see how many new Buicks you can buy today for less then $40,000.00. You may be walking for a while looking. The whole higher price thing is there because we, the consumer are willing to pay it. If we weren't one of two things would have happened. Either it would still be at 80's prices or there would be a huge empty lot there where a theme park used to be. Reality 101.
Well, there is an inflationary component as well...we aren't just paying more for stuff simply because we are willing to pay it, lol. We pay more because prices rise over time due to inflation.

Computers are a lot cheaper in real terms than in the 1980s. I'm not exactly sure that the prices at Disney are all that much more today when adjusted for inflation. That $3,100 for the Buick was a lot more of a percentage of your income than $3,100 is today, so you can't really compare.

In the end, not sure what you're arguing. Disney doesn't want no expiration tickets out there for many reasons...and they all make sense.
 

flynnibus

Premium Member
That's exactly why they stopped offering them. It was always a bad business decision to offer no expiration because people could use them 10 years later when costs rose.

It wasn't 'bad business' - it was customer focused. The problem came when Disney started the MYW model which offered significantly discounted days, and people would abuse the model by hedging ticket prices in bulk.

What is 'bad business' is punishing your customers like charging for services they don't actually use.

What was 'bad business' was Disney offering too many ticket variations, and eliminating the NoExp option helped reduce that a good bit.

Disney can now capitalize by charging people more for days than they could previously because they no longer have to honor those discounted days - that just means more revenue, not necessarily better business.

Disney could have just solved the hedging problem, but instead took the opportunity to thin the product line and happily reduce the # of discounted days they were honoring... at the expense of customer sat.
 

Dad 2 M & M

Well-Known Member
Spoiler alert....this is greatly over-simplified

When the attendance drops they'll create another program to lure peeps back...not until then. The parks are currently still full of peeps spending money....
 

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
It wasn't 'bad business' - it was customer focused. The problem came when Disney started the MYW model which offered significantly discounted days, and people would abuse the model by hedging ticket prices in bulk.

What is 'bad business' is punishing your customers like charging for services they don't actually use.

What was 'bad business' was Disney offering too many ticket variations, and eliminating the NoExp option helped reduce that a good bit.

Disney can now capitalize by charging people more for days than they could previously because they no longer have to honor those discounted days - that just means more revenue, not necessarily better business.

Disney could have just solved the hedging problem, but instead took the opportunity to thin the product line and happily reduce the # of discounted days they were honoring... at the expense of customer sat.
Disney is known for having good management overall and is in better shape today than in any point in history. I'm not saying it's because they got rid of no expiration tickets, but they are getting smarter every day. I guarantee you they determined a non expiration option was a dumb offer. Customers might have loved it, but it wasn't smart for them. Sometimes, it's not a bad or evil thing to close up a loophole. American Airlines quickly realized offering a lifetime pass wasn't smart, but they are still honoring the few they let happen.

I'd say it's amazing how well they've run the business given the state of the parks. The parks in particular have held up incredibly well despite being way too slow to invest in WDW.
 
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flynnibus

Premium Member
Disney is known for having good management overall and is in better shape today than in any point in history. I'm not saying it's because they got rid of no expiration tickets, but they are getting smarter every day

Yes.. the last few months have demonstrated that so perfectly... :rolleyes:

Reporting record numbers means you have record numbers - it is not a sign of sustainability or long term growth. When the current management establishes a model that made you a household name, life ambition, and success for 50+ years.. then we can talk about 'better shape than any point in history'. Fiscal performance isn't everything if you are the type of business that intends to be around for GENERATIONS.

I guarantee you they determined a non expiration option was a dumb offer

I'm sure using the same mindset that thought 'Disney Parks' was better than 'Walt Disney World'...

Fiscal successes don't make your customers into champions and life long advocates. Something that revenue optimization won't teach you.

They could have easily stopped Ticket Hedging by making tickets forced to be started within a certain timeframe... or simply given people cash value instead of 'service equivalent' after a time period. This would allowed people to retain the value in their 'left-over' tickets... which would still have allowed Disney to upsell the longer tickets, while limiting their long term revenue loss due to 'old paper' floating around.
 

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
Yes.. the last few months have demonstrated that so perfectly... :rolleyes:

Reporting record numbers means you have record numbers - it is not a sign of sustainability or long term growth. When the current management establishes a model that made you a household name, life ambition, and success for 50+ years.. then we can talk about 'better shape than any point in history'. Fiscal performance isn't everything if you are the type of business that intends to be around for GENERATIONS.



I'm sure using the same mindset that thought 'Disney Parks' was better than 'Walt Disney World'...

Fiscal successes don't make your customers into champions and life long advocates. Something that revenue optimization won't teach you.

They could have easily stopped Ticket Hedging by making tickets forced to be started within a certain timeframe... or simply given people cash value instead of 'service equivalent' after a time period. This would allowed people to retain the value in their 'left-over' tickets... which would still have allowed Disney to upsell the longer tickets, while limiting their long term revenue loss due to 'old paper' floating around.
So you dismiss the numbers, but you didn't substantiate your counter claim with anything other than conjecture. Let me give you some conjecture of my own since you don't want to hear about record numbers. You're underestimating the power of Disney. Are you ever around kids? Disney is still getting to its target audience at a very, very early age.

You sound like a doom and gloomer who thinks a couple decisions at one of their theme parks (which is probably still last in the chain of the Disney perpetual engine) will be the death of the company. Disney has TV, movies, and consumer products too. The studios segment is going absolutely gangbusters. The reason WDW has been ignored (which I have been highly critical about) is because they are simply focused on worldwide expansion, again to expand the footprint.

Disney's moat is bigger than ever and they've positioned themselves to be a leader for generations. Not sure how you can even begin to argue otherwise. Companies will always have challenges and will make mistakes, but Disney's moat is widening, not shrinking. The numbers are just a report card. Not only do the numbers prove it, but the psychology proves it.

I'll give you something Warren Buffett says time and again to explain my reference to the "moat."

If a person is speaking to a large crowd and says the word "Disney," nearly every single person in the audience, no matter who is in that audience has something in their mind about the word. That's the moat. Disney is one of the world's most powerful and ubiquitous brands. That doesn't happen over night or go away over night. I like their position, even getting rid of no expiration tickets.
 

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