I think that one of their major problems is that they're raising prices and, at the same time, cutting expenses.
They can make the resort a super-premium resort (more so than now) which, effectively, only the rich and super rich can afford. There's probably enough people high enough on the financial ladder where that is possible.
The problem is that they're killing the value at the same time.
It's one thing to position yourself as a discount regional park (Six Flags). It's fairly inexpensive but you know what you're getting. You're basically hitting the equivalent of a Denny's.
If you're going to go premium / exclusive, which looks to be what they're trying to do, you can't sell Texas Roadhouse dinners ($50/head) at chef prices ($500/head). You CAN satisfy someone at $500/head and make them think, "Wow.. That was expensive but you know what? It was worth every penny!" You HAVE to bring your A game. You have to be the best of the best. You can't cut corners while you do that and hope people won't notice when you give a couple a $1000 check.
Disney is like a Texas Roadhouse who decided:
- How can I get $500/head?
- How can I increase my profits even more by offering cheaper, and even smaller, cuts of meat?
- How can I reduce my costs even more? Paper napkins? Maybe have the cleaning crew come in once a week instead of every night? Maybe have them just come in once a month.. That'd probably work.
People simply won't go for that. You won't have a successful business when the experience made your customer feel like a chump instead of being wow'd. They're no longer wowing people (Well, SSE being the exception - that's pretty fantastic)- overall, it's cuts everywhere and increased prices. They still have a reservoir of nostalgia to go through. That normally keeps them going during the bad times. Now they're just draining the lake, in my opinion.