Cheaper tickets COMING SOON

[Sirwalterraleigh]

To be fair, they are doing exactly what the fans claim they want as there was a LARGE number of people who kept saying "just give us paid FP+". Well, looks like Disney listened.

Those people saw the tree for years…not the forest

 

[Lilofan]

Now? It always was as it plenty of other vacations…so their answer is to charge for the same free system and now let people book rides in advance and think this will magically make people happy?!?
The product is stale its that simple. They been talking about expansion and building things for how long now?!? Tomorrowland was getting a new ride where Stitch was its still vacant the theatre that never happened. AK they been talking about adding things and redoing dinoland for how long?!? Epcot is a train wreck and HS has been underbuilt since it opened as well

Seems to fall on deaf ears since a number of guests continue to pay for these services and shareholder meetings which is open to ANY shareholder these concerns are not raised to Iger during Q&A. Nothing but crickets.

 

[Disney Dad 3000]

"Good neighbor" hotels should get nothing. You want the Disney perks, stay on-site.

Completely agree, whether I decide to stay on or off, how it should be. Thought it was interesting they did not include Good neighbors in the 7-day LL pre-booking and lumped them in with the offsite window. I recall GN hotels getting included in the 60-day window for FP pre Covid.

 

[Splash4eva]

Seems to fall on deaf ears since a number of guests continue to pay for these services and shareholder meetings which is open to ANY shareholder these concerns are not raised to Iger during Q&A. Nothing but crickets.

Stock has been dead money for a longggg time ive said this countless times still baffling how he has survived Iger that is… in regards to people paying i have no issues with it. Once you decide to go the genie+ is such a small percent of the overall cost you be foolish not to take advantage of it. I hate to admit but it worked great yet again in my most recent trip…

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

- The experience at the parks and resorts seems to have been improving slowly since reopening. Some of that is my anecdotal observation, some is more concrete, like an increase in housekeeping over time. Maybe that’s a low bar but given labor shortages it’s somewhat more understandable. It’s a trend in the right direction at least. Cast often seemed brand new and confused right after Covid. They’ve been lovely and on point recently. Again, anecdotally, YMMV.

- The recent changes to LL sound like an improvement. And at a personal level, I warmed to LL a little after hearing it may mean bigger budgets for new rides.

- The culture war stuff seems to be settling down. I read a poll somewhere saying sentiment towards Disney among certain people in this country (not named due to forum rules) is improving. The fight with Florida’s government seems to be resolving or at least out of the news. My guess is that’s Iger’s doing. He might not be a favorite with hardcore fans but he didn’t last in a cutthroat world this long without having some savvy. Fans tend to focus on how much they are getting in their favored areas but a leader has to balance lots of different interests and groups.

- Joe Rohde is back in some capacity! Honestly I don’t know that I’d ever heard of him until recently but the more I read of his Instagram (slowly working through years of posts on art history and such,) the more impressed I am. Surely bringing him back on board in some capacity, even a symbolic one, signals a move towards certain values. Or at least an acknowledgment that some of the old school values are still important.

- They did commit publicly to investing a lot in the parks. Maybe they didn’t mean it. But the fact that they said it means something. Pair that with softening demand, an increased reliance on park profits, and Epic Universe, and hopefully it signals their intent is to compete and there’s an understanding that investment in the parks is important.

I mean…you’re not wrong per se…

But that’s as optimistic/press release as you can probably get for the current conditions

 

[Splash4eva]

To be fair, they are doing exactly what the fans claim they want as there was a LARGE number of people who kept saying "just give us paid FP+". Well, looks like Disney listened.

I wouldnt disagree there. I had success with FP+ altho many denied my claims of said success but also had success with Genie+ as well. Im fine with the change it was more of they are going back to something so many claimed was an issue… either way lack of capacity will be the problem

 

[Lilofan]

Stock has been dead money for a longggg time ive said this countless times still baffling how he has survived Iger that is… in regards to people paying i have no issues with it. Once you decide to go the genie+ is such a small percent of the overall cost you be foolish not to take advantage of it. I hate to admit but it worked great yet again in my most recent trip…

I believe majority of Disney investors are institutional shareholders like our family. One of my mutual funds has approx 5% Disney exposure. Whoever puts most of their money in the Disney stock itself is walking a tightrope without a safety net.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Stock has been dead money for a longggg time ive said this countless times still baffling how he has survived Iger that is… in regards to people paying i have no issues with it. Once you decide to go the genie+ is such a small percent of the overall cost you be foolish not to take advantage of it. I hate to admit but it worked great yet again in my most recent trip…

That stock is on the precipice…

Because overall economic conditions are still vastly favorable for Disneys market and they are bleeding cash. The culmination of 10+ years of really bad decisions with longterm consequences

Which brings us back to paid fastpass.

Selling this to everyone is not negotiable to them…they need the influx of capital.

Parks are not meant to prop up failing media and decreased consumer product opportunities in their entirety. And that is what they are asking of them now.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I wouldnt disagree there. I had success with FP+ altho many denied my claims of said success but also had success with Genie+ as well. Im fine with the change it was more of they are going back to something so many claimed was an issue… either way lack of capacity will be the problem

Fundamentally…we are all idiots

Paying for express pass at universal is one thing. That leads directly to comfort and time on the holders end. You skip the lines when you want…period.

But now automatically paying for a $150 Mickey spin AND paying to be tossed into an elaborate lottery system within a planning matrix to MAYBE have less stressful rides is not close to the same.

And we are all normalizing it.

 

[sullyinMT]

So That's the rate after the AP discount? And before tax. So with tax the value is just south of $200 a night?

I just booked a HI Express stay in Great Falls, MT (not exactly prime anything in MT) for mid August for $207 a night after tax.

Granted, there's the AP cost gateway to these rates, but it's not quite pearl clutching if compared to other tourist destinations. The cost of travel has become ridiculous. Surfside/Dockside for my travel dates would be markedly less, but Cabana and Aventura are on par with AoA (Skyliner is a big perk IMO) and CS at what I'm paying to be in an Air Force base's armpit.

 

[Splash4eva]

Fundamentally…we are all idiots

Paying for express pass at universal is one thing. That leads directly to comfort and time on the holders end. You skip the lines when you want…period.

But now automatically paying for a $150 Mickey spin AND paying to be tossed into an elaborate lottery system within a planning matrix to MAYBE have less stressful rides is not close to the same.

And we are all normalizing it.

I get what you are saying and you are totally correct pretty much on everything and Disney is no longer what is was but they are not alone.. listen im far from defending them as i just got back and prices have gotten out of control but in regards to Genie yes maybe im an outlier but to me i got more than my moneys worth now do knowing the drop times help? 100% as i literally was able to get every big ride in HS using them
On multiple days. Same with my day at Epcot. So to me of all the over priced things Disney has right now. Genie+ was not one of them. I spent more on a bubble wand than Genie daily cost… my resort mug which i used twice was the same price. Again i hate to say it Genie worked for me

 

[Splash4eva]

That stock is on the precipice…

Because overall economic conditions are still vastly favorable for Disneys market and they are bleeding cash. The culmination of 10+ years of really bad decisions with longterm consequences

Which brings us back to paid fastpass.

Selling this to everyone is not negotiable to them…they need the influx of capital.

Parks are not meant to prop up failing media and decreased consumer product opportunities in their entirety. And that is what they are asking of them now.

Bingo!

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I get what you are saying and you are totally correct pretty much on everything and Disney is no longer what is was but they are not alone.. listen im far from defending them as i just got back and prices have gotten out of control but in regards to Genie yes maybe im an outlier but to me i got more than my moneys worth now do knowing the drop times help? 100% as i literally was able to get every big ride in HS using them
On multiple days. Same with my day at Epcot. So to me of all the over priced things Disney has right now. Genie+ was not one of them. I spent more on a bubble wand than Genie daily cost… my resort mug which i used twice was the same price. Again i hate to say it Genie worked for me

I dabbled in it and it’s been “ok”

But what you describe is what I won’t do for “leisure”

Searching online forums for tricks, shortcuts and backdoors to battle an app all day to get on old rides.

But i’m salty

 

[Splash4eva]

I dabbled in it and it’s been “ok”

But what you describe is what I won’t do for “leisure”

Searching online forums for tricks, shortcuts and backdoors to battle an app all day to get on old rides.

But i’m salty

Do i agree thats not how a vacation should work? Definitely not… but since when has Disney been a vacation. Listen i miss those long late hours but when i look back granted i was younger and didnt have a daughter. We would he in parks until 2am only to rope drop at 7-8am at times it was “fun” but still lol…
The drop times are pretty much easy set an alarm and literally it may have been 100% for me… takes minutes at most. I was up lateso purchased Genie night before and up early so 7am isnt awful. But trust me i get it. Point is. I know they are old rides i know the product is stale but it still brings joy to my daughter and as a divorced Dad all i care about. Im fortunate enough this is not our only trip but if i only had 1 vacay to make with disposable income Disney wouldnt crack the top 20 right now…

 

[el_super]

Are they legally bound to this 60bln monopoly number they keep tossing around?

No, but it's not as though signaling their intentions don't have meaning. It's safe to assume they want to spend that money right now. Wall Street didn't seem too thrilled about it though. Maybe the investment firms can talk them out of it.

 

[GhostHost1000]

No, but it's not as though signaling their intentions don't have meaning. It's safe to assume they want to spend that money right now. Wall Street didn't seem too thrilled about it though. Maybe the investment firms can talk them out of it.

They don’t want to…

They have to

 

[Splash4eva]

No, but it's not as though signaling their intentions don't have meaning. It's safe to assume they want to spend that money right now. Wall Street didn't seem too thrilled about it though. Maybe the investment firms can talk them out of it.

Explain to me what makes you think its safe to assume they want to spend this money? At least in the swamplands…

 

[el_super]

Explain to me what makes you think its safe to assume they want to spend this money? At least in the swamplands…

The culmination of historical events of the past 10 years.

-Iger's plan from 2019 to increase admissions to pay for Star Wars Land
-The slow burn down and elimination of the AP programs
-Dramatic increase in prices
-Iger's assurance that the parks have growth potential
-Cancelling Lake Nona and hiring back Imagineers
-Disney Parks raking in money like no other segment of the company
-Iger loves creating things with WDI

In short: this was all set in motion back when they raised prices to pay for SWGE. It might not be common knowledge here, but there were strong rumors in Anaheim during development that it was going to be spun off into a mini-gate with a separate entrance fee. It was pretty clear that they spent way more than they could justify with AP admissions clogging the place up for pennies on the dollar. They had to adjust their prices to match their plans for growth and they've done that now.

Yes the price increases have been a disruption to the business, but a necessary one to justify further expansion and increased spending. They absolutely could backtrack on their plan, and go back to cheap admissions and bare-bones additions again. Fill the parks with APs until it's basically at capacity and hope that the volume of customers will spend on auxiliaries. But that's an easy switch they could pull tomorrow if they wanted to. There are no signs though that they are going to lower their prices.

So if they are not going to lower their prices, the only other option is to spend.

 

[GhostHost1000]

The culmination of historical events of the past 10 years.

-Iger's plan from 2019 to increase admissions to pay for Star Wars Land
-The slow burn down and elimination of the AP programs
-Dramatic increase in prices
-Iger's assurance that the parks have growth potential
-Cancelling Lake Nona and hiring back Imagineers
-Disney Parks raking in money like no other segment of the company
-Iger loves creating things with WDI

In short: this was all set in motion back when they raised prices to pay for SWGE. It might not be common knowledge here, but there were strong rumors in Anaheim during development that it was going to be spun off into a mini-gate with a separate entrance fee. It was pretty clear that they spent way more than they could justify with AP admissions clogging the place up for pennies on the dollar. They had to adjust their prices to match their plans for growth and they've done that now.

Yes the price increases have been a disruption to the business, but a necessary one to justify further expansion and increased spending. They absolutely could backtrack on their plan, and go back to cheap admissions and bare-bones additions again. Fill the parks with APs until it's basically at capacity and hope that the volume of customers will spend on auxiliaries. But that's an easy switch they could pull tomorrow if they wanted to. There are no signs though that they are going to lower their prices.

So if they are not going to lower their prices, the only other option is to spend.

There is too much here to reply to all of it but just a few comments

SWGE was not as good as it could/should have been. It’s a good thing it wasn’t a separate ticket or it would have likely bombed like the starcruiser

Many AP’s are DVC members who keep WDW and many of their resorts afloat who have and continue to shell out thousands every year (prior to any tickets, food, G+, merch purchases, etc).

If Bob likes creating things with WDI he should fire himself for TBA

In a nutshell, if they ran the Walt Disney COMPANY correctly, they wouldn’t need to nickel and dime and continue to raise prices in their PARKS to pay for all their poor decisions and failures elsewhere or for any new attractions and lands in the parks

Why they can’t seem to see what is happening and why and how they are decreasing the love for the parks in the guests who like to visit frequently and spend the money they need shows they have no clue. It’s also going to get worse before it gets better with no shovels in the ground building anything new opening anytime soon.

They have created their own problems and continue to do so.

 

[DisneyHead123]

I mean…you’re not wrong per se…

But that’s as optimistic/press release as you can probably get for the current conditions

I mean don’t get me wrong, I have my gloom and doom perspective on Disney too, it’s just about different stuff. Combined with how the rest of the Western World lives, is Disney a part of a completely unsustainable way of life wherein we trash the Earth beyond repair and fill the oceans to the brim with ever increasing amounts of plastic? I think Disney does a good job with environmental initiatives but there are some aspects of a mass consumption based project where an element of harm is unavoidable, and Disney hosts that mass consumption at a huge, amplified scale. I also have my worries about the ethics of people paying thousands for a theme park vacation as people starve in the world, although I’m more on the fence about that one as I am generally a believer in regulated capitalism for improving quality of life. Someone like Peter Singer would say that giving as much as you can is best, while others may say that makes people reliant on giving and isn’t best long term. But either way, it’s an area to think about seriously.

Stuff like LLs and rate of ride production and such strike me more as details though. I love the underlying structure of Disney parks in terms of my guest experience. What Ohana is serving or how long it’s been since a new ride came out is not a deal breaker for me. A never ending negative trend on those details - yes, of course that would reach dealbreaker levels at some point. And for awhile I was actually getting concerned - LL and DME plus other cuts and price increases all at once was a lot. But so far I would call this a blip, which is currently experiencing a market correction.