Lightning Lane Premier Pass

[SplashJacket]

What is happening with prices and why are people not pushing back against this? Just 4 years ago, a family of 4 could get into a park and have a nice day for under $700. Now it’s closer to $2000. I’m sure most of this is going on credit cards or coming out of home equity, because incomes have went up, but not by 150%. I’m seriously beginning to worry about what happens when this crazy inflationary period busts. It’s going to be brutal and could make 2008 look like a walk in the park. (No pun intended)

Your family from Missouri isn’t buying this.

Your CEO or business owner pulling in a a million a year is buying this. It’s likely an extremely small percentage of people buying this, but people very largely underestimate wealth inequality.

Going to Disney in general is out of reach for most people, but within that gradient, there’s a group making an incredible amount of money.

The star cruiser failed not because there weren’t enough people who could pay, but because there weren’t enough people within that group who wanted that experience.

 

[SingleRider]

Lightning Lane Premier Pass is now sold out for all parks tomorrow, November 25:

View attachment 827289

 

[WDWhopper]

Your family from Missouri isn’t buying this.

Your CEO or business owner pulling in a a million a year is buying this.

I don’t know, I don’t see a lot of CEOs in those lines. I see a lot of Missourians.

 

[Chi84]

I don’t know, I don’t see a lot of CEOs in those lines. I see a lot of Missourians.

How do you know who has Premier Pass?
I haven’t been following this thread so ignore if it’s not a valid question.

 

[SplashJacket]

How do you know who has Premier Pass?
I haven’t been following this thread so ignore if it’s not a valid question.

You absolutely don’t, and I’d fully expect it to be a very small allotment, otherwise it risks messing with their very expensive and thorough crowd management schemes that work because of Genie+.

DAS was basically this, but DAS is slightly reigned in by high wait attractions taking longer to provide a return time.

If you have 50,000 people in MK on a busy day, and 1,000 people have this, that’s 2% of people.

You’re already dealing with an income group that’s probably weighted mostly towards the top half of incomes, so top 2% of that is about the top 1% of earners, and that group takes in close to a million a year.

This doesn’t account for the foreign guests (who also tend to be very wealthy).

If you’re making a million a year, dropping $20,000 on a week long Disney trip ($6000 in Premier, $2400 on tickets, $7000 on concierge hotel, $4,600 on transport, food, souvenirs, etc) isn’t that crazy.

That’s a much smaller fraction than most of us pay of our annual income on vacations.

Anyway, this isn’t designed for the average person, or anyone close to that, so complaining about prices being unreasonable for the average person is silly.

Is $20,000 for a week at Disney worth it? For me? No. But I value a dollar very differently from someone making a million a year. It’s all relative

 

[WDWhopper]

Is $20,000 for a week at Disney worth it? For me? No.

It was $20,000 for a week at WDW in 2010 (including airfare, park tix and deluxe resort) Try closer to $35k+ now.

 

[erstwo]

Did anyone else check wait times today?
I checked at 2pm eastern and MK and Epcot seemed calm/ no insane wait times. R& R seemed to be down at HS - Rise was 130 minutes standby and ToT nearing 120. AK was high waits but nothing insane in any of the parks.
It will be interesting to check in later this week. Maybe today was the calm before the storm.

 

[SplashJacket]

Disney is not going to suddenly stop being a corporation, so I actually prefer for them to do stuff like this (and the Star cruiser) where they try to drive revenue increases by charging way more for those who can afford it.

Better than just raising tickets by x percent each year.

 

[Ayla]

Did anyone else check wait times today?
I checked at 2pm eastern and MK and Epcot seemed calm/ no insane wait times. R& R seemed to be down at HS - Rise was 130 minutes standby and ToT nearing 120. AK was high waits but nothing insane in any of the parks.
It will be interesting to check in later this week. Maybe today was the calm before the storm.

My niece is arriving tomorrow for her first visit- with her 1 year old. She assured me it wouldn't be crowded, after I told her how slammed it was going to be. She also assured me she was seeing Harry Potter, but didn't need different tickets.

 

[nickys]

My niece is arriving tomorrow for her first visit- with her 1 year old. She assured me it wouldn't be crowded, after I told her how slammed it was going to be. She also assured me she was seeing Harry Potter, but didn't need different tickets.

I wish I could be there when you ask her how her visit went! Make sure to ask her if she bought an interactive wand.

 

[WDWhopper]

wish I could be there when you ask her how her visit went! Make sure to ask her if she bought an interactive wand.

Imagine her face when she sees Shamu do that backflip.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

Your family from Missouri isn’t buying this.

Your CEO or business owner pulling in a a million a year is buying this. It’s likely an extremely small percentage of people buying this, but people very largely underestimate wealth inequality.

I disagree, CEOs and millionaires are the ViP tour market, I think this is directed more at the $250k crowd, guests that can’t afford/justify an extra $5k-10k a day but can afford/justify an extra $500-1500 a day.

The cheaper options like AK at $125 a person is even tempting to us and we’re way below $250k.

My guess is this is primarily being bought by upper middle class “normal” people… doctors, lawyers, realtors, contractors, white and blue collar management, etc. It’s still prohibitively expensive for the vast majority but this is priced more for the top 10% rather than the top 1%.

 

[John park hopper]

My son is in that $250K income they took their daughters in 2019 (one and done) they ago to other places like skiing in CO or trips to Europe. Disney too are being very myopic in who you are catering to, IMO the middle class has been your base all these years.

 

[LSLS]

I disagree, CEOs and millionaires are the ViP tour market, I think this is directed more at the $250k crowd, guests that can’t afford/justify an extra $5k-10k a day but can afford/justify an extra $500-1500 a day.

The cheaper options like AK at $125 a person is even tempting to us and we’re way below $250k.

My guess is this is primarily being bought by upper middle class “normal” people… doctors, lawyers, realtors, contractors, white and blue collar management, etc. It’s still prohibitively expensive for the vast majority but this is priced more for the top 10% rather than the top 1%.

But that's the really fascinating question now. Did Disney cut off the VIP crowd completely, or have they tapped into that next tier? I'd LOVE to see the data on the people getting this. Is it mostly new people, or is it mostly the crowds who used to buy the VIP for almost the same perks now switching over?

 

[Disstevefan1]

But that's the really fascinating question now. Did Disney cut off the VIP crowd completely, or have they tapped into that next tier? I'd LOVE to see the data on the people getting this. Is it mostly new people, or is it mostly the crowds who used to buy the VIP for almost the same perks now switching over?

I think LLPP is just another tier. The super rich will still want the VIP tours. Many well off regular folks will purchase LLPP.

Disney is super smart. They now charge for the totally broken LLMP, they added LLSP because of the broken LLMP and now the LLPP, again because of the totally broken LLMP, which COSTS THEM NOTHING!

LLPP is PURE PROFIT!

 

[Dranth]

My son is in that $250K income they took their daughters in 2019 (one and done) they ago to other places like skiing in CO or trips to Europe. Disney too are being very myopic in who you are catering to, IMO the middle class has been your base all these years.

I think a lot of people are one and done but many will come back and of those that do, there is a wide range of opinions on what people want to do and visiting styles.

Their current setup accommodates most of those styles. Want to not deal with any of it, then don't and just use standby. Want to skip a few lines and plan your trip, use the "cheap" LLMP/LLSP. Do you want to just go and walk on to everything with no planning? Get the LLPP. Feel like being guided around and getting quick access across parks? Get a VIP tour.

None of those make any other method unviable. The question is can they maintain that balance and I think a lot of us have concerns on that front but so far it seems to be working.

 

[CaptJackSparrow]

Disney is not going to suddenly stop being a corporation, so I actually prefer for them to do stuff like this (and the Star cruiser) where they try to drive revenue increases by charging way more for those who can afford it.

Better than just raising tickets by x percent each year.

If only, but they raise the price of everything, constantly and unsustainably. My family owns DVC, own a business, and my wife works. We pull in a pretty sizeable income, and when Disney eliminates LLMP in favor of all LLPP, that will be the end of our trips. The cost is simply impossible to justify. We have long since stopped with the afterhours events, aka MNSSHP and MVMCP, as the price there has gotten out of control. We are barely hanging on with the current ticket prices and LLMP and LLSP. Once that drops away, so will we.

 

[Disstevefan1]

 

[Rosso11]

I disagree, CEOs and millionaires are the ViP tour market, I think this is directed more at the $250k crowd, guests that can’t afford/justify an extra $5k-10k a day but can afford/justify an extra $500-1500 a day.

The cheaper options like AK at $125 a person is even tempting to us and we’re way below $250k.

My guess is this is primarily being bought by upper middle class “normal” people… doctors, lawyers, realtors, contractors, white and blue collar management, etc. It’s still prohibitively expensive for the vast majority but this is priced more for the top 10% rather than the top 1%.

I agree with you to an extent. I fall into that 1% category but I’ve only used a VIP guide once almost 20 years ago and only because I was with another family who wanted to get it. It’s nice but when I’m on vacation with my family I’m not a big fan of having a stranger with us no matter how nice they are. Which the VIP guides are amazing. But I would much rather be alone with my family. I have many friends who fall into this 1% category, who also frequently visit Disney parks and I would say only about 20% of them go the VIP route. This new premier lightening lane is much more their style including myself. Of course my experiences may be anecdotal but I don’t believe they are.

 

[Disstevefan1]

Lightning Lane Premier Pass is now sold out for all parks tomorrow, November 25:

View attachment 827289

I have to say, this is brilliant. Irreverent as to how many LLPPs they sold, saying it’s sold out, CREATES DEMAND!

This LLPP is a HUGE money maker that costs NOTHING!

I do worry that the other segments of parks like food and merch may be neglected as now, all of a sudden, not being as important and we may see even more of a dumbing down of food and merch.