Total gain in attendance at Universal Orlando from 2008-2013: 3.68 million
According to the prevailing notions on this board and similar "doom and gloom" assessments of WDW and the nearly deification of Universal- Uni Orlando is outsmarting, out building and out classing WDW in every single way as of late and there will soon be a point when Universal just plain surpasses WDW altogether. Universal Creative is the best organization in the theme park industry and every attraction is a world beating show stopper, the likes of which DIsney hasn't matched in Orlando for well over a decade.
Total gain in attendance at Walt Disney World from 2008-2013: 2.98 million
Again, according to the prevailing notions here, WDW is mired in one of the world periods that's ever stricken a set of Disney parks. Quality is poor, service is terrible, value is nonexistent and all creativity has been lost to endless penny pinching and money grubbing.
And so the difference between the rising star of Universal and their near perfect execution of their Orlando parks vs. Disney's stupid, bumbling, money grubbing and creativity lacking terrible execution of their Orlando parks amounts to a difference of:
700,000 guests over 6 years.
115,000 guests per year, or the total attendance gained in two typical operating days for the Magic Kingdom
So again, Universal has wholly outclassed WDW in every single way for 6 years, leading to huge attendance gains and a massive windfall in guest spending. Yet, both of Universal's parks COMBINED can't begin to ever hope to pass the Magic Kingdom alone. In fact, it would take years of double digit growth at Universal to equal WDW's least attended park - Hollywood Studios. Of course, Disney is prepping Star Wars at the Studios which will balloon attendance, same for Avatar at Animal Kingdom (and likely Frozen at EPCOT).
To give Universal a swinging chance, I'll set their two parks vs WDW's two least attended (DHS and AK)
Assuming Universal sees a similar ~5% annual growth over the next 6 years (same as their past 6 years)
Also assuming two lesser WDW parks see the same trend over the next 6 years as their past (which isnt realistic at all given Star Wars/Avatar- but I'll throw Uni a bone and assume those aren't open/contributing to attendance by 2019 (so only ~1% annual growth like the past 6 years)
2013 Total Universal Orlando Attendance: 15.2 million
Projected 2019 Attendance @ ~5% annual growth: 20.4 million
2013 DHS/AK Attendance: 20.3 million
Projected 2019 Attendance @ ~1% annual growth: 21.6 million
So if Universal continues to dump a around $1 billion into their parks over the next 6 years and opens a new attraction every 12 months and Disney adds literally nothing and maintains a modest 1% growth at their two smallest parks, Universal still won't surpass them at the lowest levels. But that's not what's happening- both of Disney's weakest offerings are receiving expansions comparable to Harry Potter. Between Avatar and Star Wars, they're in store for AT LEAST as much hype/marketting/attendace gains as Potter did for Universal.
Sorry guys, Disney's "falling apart" and "losing to Universal", yet they continue to reap massive profits, per cap spending is constantly growing, attendance is set to explode resort wide with the strengthening economy and new expansions- and Universal can't being to hope to equal anything Disney does in Orlando despite their meteoric rise for the better part of a decade while Disney has supposedly "mailed it in" during the same time period. It's a good problem for Disney to "suffer" through...
