Disney is going to price us out of the Kingdom..

[The Empress Lilly]

Eh. To a point sure. But should an amusement park vacation really be on par with a beachfront hawaiian vacation? I say no. It never was in the past, but now it is.

The cost of my Disney trips has essentially doubled over the last 5-7 years. Has the resort gotten 2x as good? For sure not. Has it gotten half as crowded? FOR SURE NOT. In all measurable ways, the experience has diminished while the cost has increased. In fact, for me, it's been a direct inverse. The cost has double while the enjoyment has halved.

Anyhoo....BuschGardens Williamsport and Kingsmill resort here I come.

- My WDW trips have about tripled in price since the beginning of this decade.

- Some may see a new golden age in current WDW, but for me the last decade has been a disaster. With the exception of DAK and DS every park, waterpark, resort, and the general area and general experience is much, much worse.

- There's always a lot of tough talk in price increase threads. Me, I need to work for a living. I went straight from paying off my student loan to creating a pension fund. Yes, there is a limit to what I can pay.

- What's more, there is a limit to what I want to pay. Good taste forbids spending half an average person's income on a theme park.

- I took some pretty terrific trips to Berlin, Vienna and Mexico this year. All three combined were about the price of one week WDW. Food for thought and a reality I need to learn to accept. This WDW is no longer for me.

 

[eliza61nyc]

- My WDW trips have about tripled in price since the beginning of this decade.

- Some may see a new golden age in current WDW, but for me the last decade has been a disaster. With the exception of DAK and DS every park, waterpark, resort, and the general area and general experience is much, much worse.

- There's always a lot of tough talk in price increase threads. Me, I need to work for a living. I went straight from paying off my student loan to creating a pension fund. Yes, there is a limit to what I can pay.

- What's more, there is a limit to what I want to pay. Good taste forbids spending half an average person's income on a theme park.

- I took some pretty terrific trips to Berlin, Vienna and Mexico this year. All three combined were about the price of one week WDW. Food for thought and a reality I need to learn to accept. This WDW is no longer for me.

Excellent Points and also brings about some thing that people tend to forget. peoples various experiences come into play when determining vacations worth.

Unfortunately I live on the expensive East coast. I'm going to OC NJ this summer for a week. the condo I rented is costing $3800.00 bucks and it's not even beach block. luckily I can drive but generally I'll probably end up spending about 5000-5500 bucks by the time I finish with food for the week, not far off from what I spend at the world.

I don't think anyone is independently wealthy, again just at different places. My kids are out of college (talk about ridiculous prices, college tuition for 3 kids had us eating peanuts and ramen noodles) I've got one year left on my mortgage and I've saved for retirement. I'm older.

I still haven't gotten Europe down to the cost of a wdw trip. I mean airfare alone for a family of 3 say to italy is going to run me at least 3K.

If I didn't have my dvc, not sure I wouldn't feel the same. I don't have parking fees and my room is paid for so that gives some flexibility. also again after so many trips and actually at an age where I want "less" stuff, i really don't spend a lot on souvenirs.

 

[ddbowdoin]

Excellent Points and also brings about some thing that people tend to forget. peoples various experiences come into play when determining vacations worth.

Unfortunately I live on the expensive East coast. I'm going to OC NJ this summer for a week. the condo I rented is costing $3800.00 bucks and it's not even beach block. luckily I can drive but generally I'll probably end up spending about 5000-5500 bucks by the time I finish with food for the week, not far off from what I spend at the world.

I don't think anyone is independently wealthy, again just at different places. My kids are out of college (talk about ridiculous prices, college tuition for 3 kids had us eating peanuts and ramen noodles) I've got one year left on my mortgage and I've saved for retirement. I'm older.

I still haven't gotten Europe down to the cost of a wdw trip. I mean airfare alone for a family of 3 say to italy is going to run me at least 3K.

If I didn't have my dvc, not sure I wouldn't feel the same. I don't have parking fees and my room is paid for so that gives some flexibility. also again after so many trips and actually at an age where I want "less" stuff, i really don't spend a lot on souvenirs.

I will say that the lodging is a huge part of my reasoning to skip Disney. Growing up I was an “off property” kid , my wife... “on property”. She converted me. I simply love the experience of the BC or any of the premium hotels where I can walk to a park. But damn, 400 a night is a tough pill to swallow. I suppose later in life I will appreciate it more but at 34 Disney for me is get up at 6, shower, breakfast and in the park until it closes. I don’t really take advantage of the hotel amenities the way I should.

 

[xdan0920]

Excellent Points and also brings about some thing that people tend to forget. peoples various experiences come into play when determining vacations worth.

Unfortunately I live on the expensive East coast. I'm going to OC NJ this summer for a week. the condo I rented is costing $3800.00 bucks and it's not even beach block. luckily I can drive but generally I'll probably end up spending about 5000-5500 bucks by the time I finish with food for the week, not far off from what I spend at the world.

I don't think anyone is independently wealthy, again just at different places. My kids are out of college (talk about ridiculous prices, college tuition for 3 kids had us eating peanuts and ramen noodles) I've got one year left on my mortgage and I've saved for retirement. I'm older.

I still haven't gotten Europe down to the cost of a wdw trip. I mean airfare alone for a family of 3 say to italy is going to run me at least 3K.

If I didn't have my dvc, not sure I wouldn't feel the same. I don't have parking fees and my room is paid for so that gives some flexibility. also again after so many trips and actually at an age where I want "less" stuff, i really don't spend a lot on souvenirs.

I know this is just copy and pasted from the 100 other times you posted this same exact thing, but I just can't with your nonsense about the Jersey Shore. You either....

A. Are lying. (most likely)

B. Are being ripped off.

 

[ddbowdoin]

I know this is just copy and pasted from the 100 other times you posted this same exact thing, but I just can't with your nonsense about the Jersey Shore. You either....

A. Are lying. (most likely)

B. Are being ripped off.

My in laws rent there average home , 3 bedrooms and a 10 min drive from the beach, down cape cod for 3,000 a week... so it’s not that outlandish

 

[Amidala]

I mean, I don’t think people dropping their APs will convince Disney to lower their prices. Tourists spend more money than your average AP (with none of those pesky discounts), not to mention the fact that an AP holder is already guaranteed money in the bank. Once your AP is in hand, how much more does Disney really stand to gain from you-at least compared to a family of first-timers willing to spend hundreds to thousands on food, merchandise, upcharges, etc. With GE opening, they had to thin the herd somehow. I’m obviously preaching to the choir here, but Disney knows full well that some of their APs won’t be able to afford the price hike and will have to pass on renewing. I’m sure they’re counting on it. There are others out there willing to pay, and plenty of tourists to compensate for a drop in APs.

Peak park hoppers are at $189/day right now (of course cheaper with every day added), so I guess you would need to go more than a week per year to break even on a Platinum Pass (?) It’s an ugly price hike, but if you plan to make the trip out more than once a year, it’s still a money-saver…unless I’m missing something here. DLR obviously overestimated park attendance for GE opening week (and month…my CM blockouts are slowly being lifted one week at a time) but given the size of WDW and lack of reservations, it’s safe to say it will be crazy in Orlando. The point being…I doubt these price points are going anywhere anytime soon.

Not agreeing with the decision, of course...it's greedy. But like others have said, I see the logic in it and I don't think an AP boycott will make any impression whatsoever.

 

[xdan0920]

My in laws rent there average home , 3 bedrooms and a 10 min drive from the beach, down cape cod for 3,000 a week... so it’s not that outlandish

Cape Cod is most assuredly not the Jersey Shore. Beachfront properties for July in Ocean City go for under her purported $3800 a week. Also, 2k for a weeks worth of food at the shore is beyond silly. I'm not talking out my rear end here. I've spent my life at the Jersey Shore.

 

[MissViv]

So, my SIL and I are planning a trip to DW in Nov. this year and are NOT staying at a Deluxe (unless we can get a discount) we are staying at POFQ. We are in our 60's & 70"s but still able to get around quite well.

For the first time, I am thinking we may not do the parks (maybe one day) and just resort hop, especially to the Deluxe's (would like to visit them all) and see all the Christmas Decorations.

I do love the parks though and it seems crazy to go withour going to the parks. I went with my SIL two years ago, it was her 1st time there, and we had a ball. We bought park hopper passes and went four days BUT we only spent a few hours in the parks. We stayed at the Poly and she loved it there. We watched the fireworks from the beach every night. She said it was the nicest hotel she had ever stayed in and we have fond memories.

I have been going to Disney since 1973 and have never visited most of the Deluxe Resorts because we were park HOGS. Planning on visiting as many as we can this visit. We will go to AK for breakfast at Boma on our last day.

 

[eliza61nyc]

My in laws rent there average home , 3 bedrooms and a 10 min drive from the beach, down cape cod for 3,000 a week... so it’s not that outlandish

I love cape cod. Everybody's mileage will vary according to how they like to vacation. There are always ways to trim a budget, yep there are cheaper ways to go to the shore, just like there are cheaper ways to go to Disney.

#hatersgonnahate

 

[Trackmaster]

Guys, there are theme parks and amusement parks all over the world. Most of the parks in America are pretty cheap. You can season passes for $100 generally, and you can get tickets to $40 after you find some discounts. If you can't afford Disney, stick to your local amusement park that's pretty cheap and you don't travel for. If you make a high salary and live pretty well, you have the option of going to a more elite park, and paying more for a better experience. Its the natural way things work. It wouldn't make sense for Disney to slash their prices, and being overrun, have cheap attractions, and be tawdry just because everybody needed to go there.

You also complain about crowds. You think that slashing prices will help with crowds...?

 

[FigmentFreak]

But the parks are still wall to wall filled with people. The only way Disney has of fighting large crowds is by raising prices. I don't like it any more than anyone else, but I do understand it.

Or they could lower the cap on max capacity at the parks. If they don't let as many people in the parks, they aren't as crowded, but raising prices and letting the parks get packed like sardines is a win/win for Disney.

 

[mdcpr]

We go to WDW every three years. With the overcrowding and price hikes for our next trip in 2022 we are seriously looking at going to Europe instead. maybe take a day or two to see disney Paris. When we look at at what is costing us to go to WDW vs where else we could go and do with that money, WDW is no longer the slam dunk winner it used to be.

Over Spring Break, London was cheaper than WDW. You should consider it.

 

[mdcpr]

True on being the best thing ever, but I’ll best honest...I think Le Cellier is better than Ruth’s Chris, Saltgrass, Pappas Brothers, Morton’s and Smith and Wollensky.

Not better than Peter Lugers.

 

[larryz]

This seemed like fiction just a few decades ago...

 

[BoarderPhreak]

We love WDW, sure... But we travel to other places (e.g. Tuscany, Azores, Germany) far more often.

It's a great big, beautiful world out there - and most of it's cheaper than Disney.

 

[xdan0920]

I love cape cod. Everybody's mileage will vary according to how they like to vacation. There are always ways to trim a budget, yep there are cheaper ways to go to the shore, just like there are cheaper ways to go to Disney.

#hatersgonnahate

#liarsgonnalie

 

[Chef Mickey]

Eh. To a point sure. But should an amusement park vacation really be on par with a beachfront hawaiian vacation? I say no. It never was in the past, but now it is.

The cost of my Disney trips has essentially doubled over the last 5-7 years. Has the resort gotten 2x as good? For sure not. Has it gotten half as crowded? FOR SURE NOT. In all measurable ways, the experience has diminished while the cost has increased. In fact, for me, it's been a direct inverse. The cost has doubled while the enjoyment has halved.

Anyhoo....BuschGardens Williamsport and Kingsmill resort here I come.

I’ve been to Hawaii and it cost quite a bit more than Disney. More expensive flight, hotel, and food. But like it or not, Disney World is probably a top 10 destination in the world. It’s just a different destination than Hawaii.

Hawaii was beautiful, but it’s a different trip. Frankly, there isn’t a ton to do other than relax...which is great, but it’s not non stop entertainment. You have to largely make your own fun. The food was also very expensive and frankly, very average...I’ve only been to Maui though.

I went to Hawaii 7 years ago and more recently. The more recent trip increased as well. I think everything increases over time...maybe not at the same rate, but definitely increases. Disney is charging what they can get and it’s still probably lower than what they can get. It’s just the reality of a top destination.

I travel a lot and I see prices increase every time I go. The resort fee at a favorite beach destination (which Disney doesn’t charge) went from $40/night to $80/night in 5 years and the room rate increased at least 30%.

 

[BoarderPhreak]

Remember the old days when you could stay at the Swalphin for $150/night? I think the resort fee was like, $12-15/night back then...

 

[Chef Mickey]

Not better than Peter Lugers.

Never heard of it, but a steak is pretty much the easiest “high end” meal you can make. Good beef, well cooked and it will be good. There is not much cooking skill to it like there is in French cuisine that needs more technique.

I’ve had better steaks than at Le Cellier, but they do a solid job and the mushroom risotto is good.

There is also something to eating at EPCOT versus a restaurant off the highway. You’re paying for it all.

 

[SplinterPooh]

This seemed like fiction just a few decades ago...

Awesome movie.