Is attendance really down at WDW this or…

[Tha Realest]

It's the usual Iger hubris - "We're ESPN, we're the big dog, everyone will flock to us".

The house always wins.

However, in this case “the house” is the NFL, the SEC, and the NBA, and their ability to hold ESPN and ABC over a barrel when it comes to negotiating TV and streaming rights.

 

[Epcot81Fan]

Same boat. My standard advice when people ask about planning a trip to WDW is
1) Don’t go, or, if you must…
2) Go to Disneyland instead.

I also throw in:

3) Have you ever been to Japan?

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

A back-of-the-envelope estimate is that a 1-month refurb of ROTR would cost this much in ILL sales (assuming 11 hour days at $20 per ILL at 30.5 days per month at 1,550 riders/hour capacity):

• $2.6MM per month if 25% of capacity was bought as ILL
• $3.4MM per month at 33% of capacity
• $5.15MM per month at 50% of capacity

Now imagine how many months it'll take to resolve the issue.

For reference, RnRC's refurb earlier this year lasted 3 months and didn't make the ride more reliable.

At 3 months of downtime, you're looking at $7.8MM to $15.5MM in lost ILL.

For a 6-month refurb, which is what I think it'd take, that's $15MM to $30MM in ILL for just one ride.

My guess is that neither the DHS park VP nor Josh D'Amaro is going to take that kind of revenue hit unless there was absolutely no other option.

That's some crazy outlandish numbers!
But how could WDW afford to do the needed maintenance on their rides before Covid? I have been going to WDW for years and I never noticed such a huge amount of downtime of a lot of rides that they have now at disney! Somehow, Disney managed to keep their attractions running. It seems to me that if people get frustrated enough with paying a high price just to enter and have a number of rides down, that would have an effect on whether they return or not. They will lose a lot of money if they keep on this course of nonaction too, though I don't know the numbers for that.
So, they lose money if they do the required maintenance and they lose customers and their families if they Don't do the maintenace. No one wants to spend a lot of money for tickets and have that many rides down. It is unacceptable IMO.

 

[ChrisM]

Be wary, those who depend on the taste of the forbidden fruit.

"Do not, my friends, become addicted to water. It will take hold of you, and you will resent its absence!"

 

[HauntedPirate]

That's some crazy outlandish numbers!
But how could WDW afford to do the needed maintenance on their rides before Covid? I have been going to WDW for years and I never noticed such a huge amount of downtime of a lot of rides that they have now at disney! Somehow, Disney managed to keep their attractions running. It seems to me that if people get frustrated enough with paying a high price just to enter and have a number of rides down, that would have an effect on whether they return or not. They will lose a lot of money if they keep on this course of nonaction too, though I don't know the numbers for that.
So, they lose money if they do the required maintenance and they lose customers and their families if they Don't do the maintenace. No one wants to spend a lot of money for tickets and have that many rides down. It is unacceptable IMO.

They would close rides for refurbishment. Simple as that. It wasn't the same kind of financial decision before the idiocy of Genie- and ILL's came about.

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

They would close rides for refurbishment. Simple as that. It wasn't the same kind of financial decision before the idiocy of Genie- and ILL's came about.

If it is as simple as that, then disney is in bigger trouble than I thought. There is no way they can keep happy customers coming back if a majority of the attractions aren't working. It will just get worse and snowball.
I am concerned that they are so obsessed with D+ making money, that the parks will continue to suffer, and that's not good for the future, IMO.

 

[Lilofan]

I also throw in:

3) Have you ever been to Japan?

Only 42% of US citizens have passports. More than 1/2 will not experience outside USA.

 

[thomas998]

Im paying $750 for a 4 day hopper week of Thanksgiving. More than i paid for a 10 day ticket last summer…

And a 10 day pass is 780... I frankly don't understand the point of a park hopper when you can't swap until after 2:00pm and have to make reservations. For me it just means 1 park a day and skip AK completely.

 

[Jrb1979]

Only 42% of US citizens have passports. More than 1/2 will not experience outside USA.

That's crazy. Compare that to Canadians who are at 70%.

 

[Lilofan]

That's crazy. Compare that to Canadians who are at 70%.

2/3 of US citizens earning more than $100K have a passport as compared to a number who have a high school diploma or less education who do not have a passport. I could visit Canada without a passport pre 2007 now I need to show my US passport at the border.

 

[Splash4eva]

And a 10 day pass is 780... I frankly don't understand the point of a park hopper when you can't swap until after 2:00pm and have to make reservations. For me it just means 1 park a day and skip AK completely.

Ill be honest with you. The 2pm doesnt bother me as much as when we do park hop its almost every time after 2pm anyways.

 

[Nubs70]

If you live in the US, you can ski, go to a semi tropical beach and generally visit any type of topography the world has to offer without leaving the US. What country in Europe offers the same locations within their own borders?

 

[LittleBuford]

If you live in the US, you can ski, go to a semi tropical beach and generally visit any type of topography the world has to offer without leaving the US. What country in Europe offers the same locations within their own borders?

Travelling isn’t just about topography.

 

[jpinkc]

And a 10 day pass is 780... I frankly don't understand the point of a park hopper when you can't swap until after 2:00pm and have to make reservations. For me it just means 1 park a day and skip AK completely.

And for a family of 4 thats $3120 a day just to go and spend more for Genie Plus the only Plus is to TWDC pocketbook

 

[Jrb1979]

If you live in the US, you can ski, go to a semi tropical beach and generally visit any type of topography the world has to offer without leaving the US. What country in Europe offers the same locations within their own borders?

While you can do that, I will also say look at how much people look down on many of those places.

 

[wannabeBelle]

And a 10 day pass is 780... I frankly don't understand the point of a park hopper when you can't swap until after 2:00pm and have to make reservations. For me it just means 1 park a day and skip AK completely.

Using a date of 11/17/2023 for a single adult 10 day park hopper ticket the pricing I got was $939.60 including tax. Without the hopper it is $838.42 including tax. Marie

 

[jpinkc]

Using a date of 11/17/2023 for a single adult 10 day park hopper ticket the pricing I got was $939.60 including tax. Without the hopper it is $838.42 including tax. Marie

So now its 3353.68 for a Family of 4 per day, then add Genie Plus............. Disney where is the value to ANYONE who works a real job in this??????????

 

[Jrb1979]

Using a date of 11/17/2023 for a single adult 10 day park hopper ticket the pricing I got was $939.60 including tax. Without the hopper it is $838.42 including tax. Marie

That's insane. How anyone here can justify that price is beyond me.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

So now its 3353.68 for a Family of 4 per day, then add Genie Plus............. Disney where is the value to ANYONE who works a real job in this??????????

How are you getting over $3,000 per day?

838.42 for a 10 day ticket is $83.84 per day, so for 4 people it would be $335.36/day for the family

 

[jpinkc]

That's insane. How anyone here can justify that price is beyond me.

I agree, if you stay on property its easily north of what 15000 for 10 days........... No food, No Drink, No Souveniers, No Photo Pass, No Genie.................