Disney takes its business outdoors
The company will test guided tours through Wyoming and Hawaii.
By Sean Mussenden | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted February 19, 2005
The bears, moose and mountain lions that roam Yellowstone National Park will get a new animal neighbor this summer: Mickey Mouse.
To test an expansion of its vacation business beyond theme parks and cruises -- and beyond Florida and California -- the Walt Disney Co. will begin offering weeklong guided tours later this year through the wilds of Wyoming and Hawaii.
Disney will run 15 of the 30-person group tours this summer at a "test" cost of between $5,600 and $7,800 for a family of four, airfare not included. If the tours prove popular, they could become a fixture in Disney's lineup of vacation offerings and even be expanded to other destinations, the company said.
For a company best known for creating false realities -- Main Street USA, for example -- Disney's turn toward authentic outdoor adventure might not seem a natural one.
But manufactured reality and costumed characters are only part of the reason families are attracted to Disney's vacation brand, said Lisa Haines, a vice president in Disney's parks and resorts division.
"There's a trust consumers associate with a Disney vacation. People who vacation with us know there's a central level of quality and expertise. Those things are also related to the Disney brand," she said. Disney hopes those traits will encourage people to consider a Disney vacation outside Florida and California.
Trip details are still being worked out, but promotional materials promise surfing lessons and volcano tours in Hawaii and horseback rides through cowboy country in Wyoming. If Disney's ubiquitous costumed characters make an appearance, they would only do so in a very controlled setting, Haines said.
Ted Eubanks, a Texas-based outdoor and eco-tourism consultant, said Disney could find it tough to break into the market. "It's not that Disney can't do it. My word! They seem to be able to do whatever they set their mind to," he said. "I just wonder how well their brand will translate to these tours. Disney is in the business of virtual reality, fabricated reality. My clients are trying to escape that."
Still, Eubanks said, a big market exists for families who want to get close to nature, but not too close. Disney could make an outdoor vacation attractive to that group, he said.
Sean Mussenden can be reachedat smussenden@orlandosentinel.comor 407-420-5664
The company will test guided tours through Wyoming and Hawaii.
By Sean Mussenden | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted February 19, 2005
The bears, moose and mountain lions that roam Yellowstone National Park will get a new animal neighbor this summer: Mickey Mouse.
To test an expansion of its vacation business beyond theme parks and cruises -- and beyond Florida and California -- the Walt Disney Co. will begin offering weeklong guided tours later this year through the wilds of Wyoming and Hawaii.
Disney will run 15 of the 30-person group tours this summer at a "test" cost of between $5,600 and $7,800 for a family of four, airfare not included. If the tours prove popular, they could become a fixture in Disney's lineup of vacation offerings and even be expanded to other destinations, the company said.
For a company best known for creating false realities -- Main Street USA, for example -- Disney's turn toward authentic outdoor adventure might not seem a natural one.
But manufactured reality and costumed characters are only part of the reason families are attracted to Disney's vacation brand, said Lisa Haines, a vice president in Disney's parks and resorts division.
"There's a trust consumers associate with a Disney vacation. People who vacation with us know there's a central level of quality and expertise. Those things are also related to the Disney brand," she said. Disney hopes those traits will encourage people to consider a Disney vacation outside Florida and California.
Trip details are still being worked out, but promotional materials promise surfing lessons and volcano tours in Hawaii and horseback rides through cowboy country in Wyoming. If Disney's ubiquitous costumed characters make an appearance, they would only do so in a very controlled setting, Haines said.
Ted Eubanks, a Texas-based outdoor and eco-tourism consultant, said Disney could find it tough to break into the market. "It's not that Disney can't do it. My word! They seem to be able to do whatever they set their mind to," he said. "I just wonder how well their brand will translate to these tours. Disney is in the business of virtual reality, fabricated reality. My clients are trying to escape that."
Still, Eubanks said, a big market exists for families who want to get close to nature, but not too close. Disney could make an outdoor vacation attractive to that group, he said.
Sean Mussenden can be reachedat smussenden@orlandosentinel.comor 407-420-5664
It sounds interesting, I wonder how Disney will try to "Disneyfy" these expereiences.