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

[NickMaio]

Price your insurance from 2014. I mean, everything goes up and Disney isn’t some commodity like gasoline or electricity. It’s a vacation...for fun.

It’s not like I’m happy, but Disney isn’t alone here. They aren’t worried about how much your paycheck increased. They are charging what they can get, like everyone else.

Disney has gone up 10times more per year than anything on your list.
Its crazy, inflation has been around 2 percent per year for the last 10 years. WDW is nowhere near that number.
You simply can't compare WDW price increases to anything else in the market.

 

[Jonathan Dalecki]

I know this is fairly Un-Disney of me, but stay with me for one moment here.

Good.

GOOD.

If Disney can become too expensive for the people who leave their empty cups in the queue to Buzz Lightyear, so much the better, honestly.

If Disney can become too expensive for loud, pushy people, so much the better, honestly.

If Disney can become too expensive for people who make a mess of the toppings bar at Cosmic Ray and Pecos Bill and Restaurantosaurus, so much the better, honestly.

Too many people right now can afford Disney. Disney should be MORE expensive. MORE elite. If I want to hobknob and rub elbows with Mr. and Mrs. Everyday, I'll just go downtown for a day.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

Even though the birth rate may be declining the projected US population will increase from current 300+ million to 438 million by 2050. This is due to immigration-- will this take up the slack in the declining birth rate and not affect Disney (provided they are still here) I have no idea.

Overall the world birth rate is 2.4. It was 5.0 or so in 1960. And the countries that are having a lot of children are not developed countries. Europe, Asia, even Russia and of course North America are below the 2.0 requirement. We have three kids, that's a lot in this day and age and in reality it really isn't. So the question remains will there even be people from other countries that will come over here and will the ones that come embrace Western culture? In other words, will Disney and things like that which we take for granted even be able to afford to exist if other cultures don't embrace it? This may be a long ways off, but someone who is 20 might live to see it, unless the younger generation starts breeding. Good luck with that fantasy though!

 

[SteamboatJoe]

I know this is fairly Un-Disney of me, but stay with me for one moment here.

Good.

GOOD.

If Disney can become too expensive for the people who leave their empty cups in the queue to Buzz Lightyear, so much the better, honestly.

If Disney can become too expensive for loud, pushy people, so much the better, honestly.

If Disney can become too expensive for people who make a mess of the toppings bar at Cosmic Ray and Pecos Bill and Restaurantosaurus, so much the better, honestly.

Too many people right now can afford Disney. Disney should be MORE expensive. MORE elite. If I want to hobknob and rub elbows with Mr. and Mrs. Everyday, I'll just go downtown for a day.

 

[monothingie]

Peter Luger is a well known steakhouse in Brooklyn. You may have seen their sauce sold at the grocery store (I see it in almost every local grocery but it may have to do with living just outside NYC):

View attachment 382827

I would agree with @mdcpr that their steaks are far superior to Le Cellier’s

@Monty will hurt me, but LeCelier is overrated. It's good for a theme park restaurant, but....
Sorry the ribeye let me down. It was awful, the filet however is pretty decent.

@Me 'Earties What about Keens?????

 

[ddbowdoin]

@Monty will hurt me, but LeCelier is overrated. It's good for a theme park restaurant, but....
Sorry the ribeye let me down. It was awful, the filet however is pretty decent.

@Me 'Earties What about Keens?????

if it was 25 bucks I'd be ok with it... but you hit 50 and it becomes prime time level and it sadly never met that mark for me. Cool environment though, fun experience but well overpriced. Again, the food at Disney is a let down in general.

 

[Kingtut]

At what point is discussing a fantasy scenario a waste of time?

I still see comments online, saying if only Disneyland would eliminate the payment plan for annual passes, attendance would decrease. People have been saying this for, what, a decade now? Disney does not want to limit attendance.

Just like your tipping point comment. People have been saying this for as long as I can remember - Disney has *finally* gone too far! Yet, attendance patters continue to say otherwise.

If attendance is limited, people will go more often? I'd want to go more often if that were the case as well, but so would everyone else. Demand would exceed supply and I'd actually be able to go less often.

I don't think you really understand the "frustration" that the posters here have with the current operation of the Disney parks. In my opinion it isn't just the actual amount of money - it's the constant grabbing for any additional money they can get their customers to spend. Those of us who grew up with them feel a sense of betrayal from Disney ( justified or not ) and the loss of something we loved and looked forward to. I agree with those people who suggest that Disney needs to limit the number of bodies through the gates every day if they are really concerned with the guest experience which is the actual product of the parks. If the perceived quality of the product declines while the price increases eventually people will stop desiring the product. then Disney will have a problem but I don't think they care. It appears to me that Disney currently views the parks only as a cash machine to support their future direction of streaming content to the 5 inch screens that everyone has in front of them all the time. Once they have run out of the reserve of good will and nostalgia built up through the years - I can see them selling or spinning off the parks. Parks are big, expensive, hard to run, and not needed to sell IP's any more once Disney + is everywhere in the US. I do not believe that the company today would build a park if they didn't already have them in the US. The Asian parks are only being built as a gateway to get Disney IP into those regions where they don't have years of history and good will to draw on ( and the PRC is paying for a lot of it).

 

[Walt Disney1955]

View attachment 382828

Well, that's one.............

I know this is fairly Un-Disney of me, but stay with me for one moment here.

Good.

GOOD.

If Disney can become too expensive for the people who leave their empty cups in the queue to Buzz Lightyear, so much the better, honestly.

If Disney can become too expensive for loud, pushy people, so much the better, honestly.

If Disney can become too expensive for people who make a mess of the toppings bar at Cosmic Ray and Pecos Bill and Restaurantosaurus, so much the better, honestly.

Too many people right now can afford Disney. Disney should be MORE expensive. MORE elite. If I want to hobknob and rub elbows with Mr. and Mrs. Everyday, I'll just go downtown for a day.

There is a good argument of whether this is a "what would Walt think" type of thing. I know we get nostalgic asking that question as if we know the answer but the question is what is the answer? Disneyland opened in 1955 for $1 to get in. Granted, there were tickets to pay for rides back then as well but there is a quote by Walt who said something along the lines of:

"While Disneyland will have a carnival-like feel in some areas it will NOT be a place for people to sink their money with carnival games."

Makes me wonder how he'd react to DinoLand.

But in all seriousness, even taking into account inflation it was far cheaper in its time to visit Disneyland in 1955 than in 2019. This happens a lot of places of course. A Yankees game to see Mickey Mantle didn't cost as much in 1955 compared to 2019 either (inflation included). But does that make it right? Is that the vision for Walt? Disneyland was always going to be a place that cost more to visit than your average carnival I am sure, but did he not want regular families to come as well?

 

[Chef Mickey]

Peter Luger is a well known steakhouse in Brooklyn. You may have seen their sauce sold at the grocery store (I see it in almost every local grocery but it may have to do with living just outside NYC):

View attachment 382827

I would agree with @mdcpr that their steaks are far superior to Le Cellier’s

Maybe, but it’s not at EPCOT and Le Cellier still serves a good steak. I mean, it’s AAA Canadian beef which is just a notch below prime.

 

[Chef Mickey]

Disney has gone up 10times more per year than anything on your list.
Its crazy, inflation has been around 2 percent per year for the last 10 years. WDW is nowhere near that number.
You simply can't compare WDW price increases to anything else in the market.

Ten times? Now you’re exaggerating.

What have Universal’s prices done? I’m too lazy to look it up but I’d guess it’s closer than you think.

 

[eliza61nyc]

Disney has gone up 10times more per year than anything on your list.
Its crazy, inflation has been around 2 percent per year for the last 10 years. WDW is nowhere near that number.
You simply can't compare WDW price increases to anything else in the market.

I don't think your supposed to. Imo, it's a totally non essential hot commodity, lol like when people were paying 200 bucks for cabbage patch dollars and 19000 for birkin bags. Everybody wants/wanted one so the price goes up.

 

[SteveBrickNJ]

Could not agree with you more. We are retired and on a fixed income and save too afford a trip to WDW, it is becoming more and more difficult to justify going with WDW nickel and diming we guests to death (wish it was only nickel and dimes). I grew up on Disney but the current Disney money grab means we will be going else where --it's a great big world out there. May be the next recession will hit Disney hard and bring prices back some and we will go then. We have not been to Universal in years that may be on our to do list

I like the statement you made: "It's a great big world out there".
Even though at age 57 I've been to Disney World 5 times and Disneyland 2 times, I've also taken 4 cruises....been to UK twice.....been to Ireland 3 times.
My wife and I do not plan to return to Disney again until our 17 year old daughter hypothetically becomes a 24 year old....possibly gets married....possibly has a kid (whenever)....that grandchild eventually turns 4. Wow! We are not giving Disney our money again until 2029 or beyond!?
This summer we will see Singapore!

 

[Amidala]

I know this is fairly Un-Disney of me, but stay with me for one moment here.

Good.

GOOD.

If Disney can become too expensive for the people who leave their empty cups in the queue to Buzz Lightyear, so much the better, honestly.

If Disney can become too expensive for loud, pushy people, so much the better, honestly.

If Disney can become too expensive for people who make a mess of the toppings bar at Cosmic Ray and Pecos Bill and Restaurantosaurus, so much the better, honestly.

Too many people right now can afford Disney. Disney should be MORE expensive. MORE elite. If I want to hobknob and rub elbows with Mr. and Mrs. Everyday, I'll just go downtown for a day.

Assuming this is a joke but either way, it's always worth reiterating: All of the disasters you just referenced are caused by DVC, APs and others with the means to frequent Disney constantly. 100% guaranteed, nearly every time.

You’re making the false association between attendance and customer satisfaction.

Disney has incredible inertia it has built through generations. It is something many believe they should do even before they even know what it truly is. Disney has also built up a huge recurring customer base through its sale of dvc. Now Disney keeps expanding its base through events, and things like hosting through world of sports.

Do not assume climbing attendance necessarily means a match in satisfaction or sentiment. For many, the product is still in the “we will tolerate the prices...” but that doesn’t mean the customer is satisfied with the arrangement.

People should take note how often the parks hit capacity... it’s not growing. The growth is coming from disney’s Successful filling out of the calendar and expanding the customer base to new visitor types.

No, I understand the difference...What I'm suggesting is either a) The percentage of dissatisfied customers is not as significant as you think OR b) These same dissatisfied customers are continuing to shell out money for passes/tickets, merchandise, food, etc. regardless of their hang-ups. Probably a solid combination of the two.

I'm not trying to pretend people enjoy paying through the nose for food & lodgings they can find for better value elsewhere...I get that. But there's no other theme park destination on the planet with the same level of name recognition-and, yes, that name is synonymous with quality for many people, whether or not all of us on this forum would agree.

I don't really feel any stats are needed to prove that the general consensus toward Disney across the board (parks, films, etc.) is extremely favorable right now. They've cornered the market & are taking advantage of this to cram people into their parks and overcharge for it. I don't see them suffering any significant consequences (either in terms of attendance, or overwhelmingly negative press/customer feedback) for doing so. Again, not saying I like it- but at least from my perspective, that seems to be the case.

I have been roasted repeatedly for saying the same thing. I’d be happy if they increased prices to $200/day if it reduced crowds 30% or something.

I'd rather be squashed against 100,000 other people for cheaper, but I definitely agree - this is the only way capacity would ever lower.

 

[SteveBrickNJ]

I like the statement you made: "It's a great big world out there".
Even though at age 57 I've been to Disney World 5 times and Disneyland 2 times, I've also taken 4 cruises....been to UK twice.....been to Ireland 3 times.
My wife and I do not plan to return to Disney until our 17 year old becomes a 24 year old....gets married....has a kid whenever....that kid turns 4. Wow! We are not giving Disney our money again until 2029 or beyond!?
This summer we will see Singapore!

Not everyone can afford to go to Singapore. Maybe even us Actually this will be our last big trip. Only one year of HS remaining for DD then we have College bills to pay.
*
*
BUT.....
..... US Disney fans CAN can go to Busch Gardens......the Grand Canyon......Niagara Falls......take a 5 day cruise out of Baltimore or NJ to Bermuda. I encourage people not to reward Disney for raising their prices again. Maybe don't go a 12th time? Wasn't your previous 11 already enough? As the previous poster said: It's a big world. I encourage people to look around the US and Canada (or UK or Ireland) and consider seeing something else.
...................and if you can afford a flight to Ireland then that is a beautiful and VERY friendly country. Americans are treated well there. Phoenix and Sedona are interesting and comfortable winter vacations.

 

[networkpro]

They built 3 additional parks and 2 water parks at WDW during that time span to help with that. They also tried to build another resort in Virginia and expanded DLR.

But expansion sizes that didn't match the population growth as well as the drop in the cost and ease of travel. I95 didn't open until 6 years after Magic Kingdom opened.

 

[BoarderPhreak]

If Disney can become too expensive for _______, so much the better, honestly.

Actually, that describes more wealthy people than poors, in my experience. A sense of self entitlement and "let the mop boy clean it up" attitude.

 

[flynnibus]

I don't see them suffering any significant consequences (either in terms of attendance, or overwhelmingly negative press/customer feedback) for doing so. Again, not saying I like it- but at least from my perspective, that seems to be the case.

Based on what metrics? The financial reports?

Metrics like revenue are being held up by insane pricing boosts. Attendence is being held up by expanding the offers to lure people in at other non traditional times.

Increases are not keeping pace with the increases in pricing.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

I don't think you really understand the "frustration" that the posters here have with the current operation of the Disney parks. In my opinion it isn't just the actual amount of money - it's the constant grabbing for any additional money they can get their customers to spend. Those of us who grew up with them feel a sense of betrayal from Disney ( justified or not ) and the loss of something we loved and looked forward to. I agree with those people who suggest that Disney needs to limit the number of bodies through the gates every day if they are really concerned with the guest experience which is the actual product of the parks. If the perceived quality of the product declines while the price increases eventually people will stop desiring the product. then Disney will have a problem but I don't think they care. It appears to me that Disney currently views the parks only as a cash machine to support their future direction of streaming content to the 5 inch screens that everyone has in front of them all the time. Once they have run out of the reserve of good will and nostalgia built up through the years - I can see them selling or spinning off the parks. Parks are big, expensive, hard to run, and not needed to sell IP's any more once Disney + is everywhere in the US. I do not believe that the company today would build a park if they didn't already have them in the US. The Asian parks are only being built as a gateway to get Disney IP into those regions where they don't have years of history and good will to draw on ( and the PRC is paying for a lot of it).

I understand why people are frustrated at certain things, whether or not I always agree.

I find there's a lot of wishful thinking, and a lack of solutions to what people see as problems.

You want to limit attendance? How does that work? Should Disney double prices to make up for it, alienating a lot of people? Or do you want them to keep prices the same while lowering attendance, a proposal that has zero chance of coming to fruition?

I want them to add capacity to the parks attraction rosters. I want them to keep the parks open later. I want them to make evening magic hours three hours long again. Unless I vote with my wallet, and a lot of people do the same, the message being sent right now is that people are happy with what Disney is providing.

You say people will stop desiring the product if quality decreases and prices increase. Attendance trends tell us that desire for all things Disney is alive and well, and increasing as a matter of fact.

 

[SteamboatJoe]

Even if people started to effectively vote with their wallet, I suspect the response would be cuts, not the changes that are being pined for by many here, myself included.

EDIT: I am not entirely convinced limiting attendance is the answer.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

Even if people started to effectively vote with their wallet, I suspect the response would be cuts, not the changes that are being pined for by many here, myself included.

True. I think they're very short sighted as of late when it comes to making up for any shortfalls.

Having said that, I also acknowledge there's a level of investment and expansion happening at WDW now that hasn't happened in a long time. Tron at MK, two major attractions at Epcot, Pandora recently opened, Star Wars and Mickey Mouse ride at the Studios.

Now, if only they would stick to adding things, rather than replacing things. They have enough space to add new attractions without shuttering old ones.