JoeCamel
Well-Known Member
Where did you get your numbers?
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Is attendance really down at WDW this or…
- Thread starter coachb
- Start date
Chi84
Premium Member
I don’t doubt the numbers at all. The cost of a WDW vacation is increasing at a ridiculous pace. People who could afford it in the past can no longer do so or don’t find sufficient value for their money.
DisneyDreamer08
Well-Known Member
I feel like the parks are more consistently busy now. There are no more slow times/ moderate times / busy times. It’s all just busy. My daughter and I were there this past August, the 17th-24th. I had been planning that trip for a while and I remember checking wait times every day the year before. Wait times were so low I was convinced we wouldn’t even need LL. Fast forward a year and August 2024 was PACKED. At times it felt more crowded than our March 2023 trip. We did use LL most day and I don’t regret it. We definitely needed it.
PREMiERdrum
Well-Known Member
We are seeing an increase in quoting for 2025, but the conversion rate is lower than we're used to. Several regular clients have booked with the minimum $200 deposit but don't plan to carry on unless new discounts are released that better fit their needs.
I have a family of 5 who just booked a long, but otherwise fairly normal vacation (family suite, dining, hopper tickets)... their total *with discount* was $15k. Many of our folks who used to be every year or every-other-year clients just can't afford it like they used to. It appears to me that we're seeing a shift back to the "once in a lifetime" or "very special occasion" cadence of traveling. If they don't want to address pricing for their preferred Golden Goose onsite, captive clients, they need to either kickstart new customer development or do more to right-size their hotel and dining capacity.
I’m 50/50 on it being more or less busy. Here now and it does feel crowded but the longest we waited so far has been an hour for jungle cruise. 55 minute waits were about 20-30 mins yesterday at Hollywood.
I don’t put it past Disney to make it feel packed on purpose and also run the rides at half capacity manufacturing long wait times.
Just ate at ohana. They had several tables open when we were leaving. I haven’t ever seen it like that.
I don’t put it past Disney to make it feel packed on purpose and also run the rides at half capacity manufacturing long wait times.
Just ate at ohana. They had several tables open when we were leaving. I haven’t ever seen it like that.
donaldtoo
Well-Known Member
The vast majority of family (family of 5, plus others on a few trips) trips we took in years past were week-long trips with 6-day park hoppers.
We took a 5-night family trip last October and only booked 2 park days and 2 TS restaurants (MK, Epcot and Raglan Road and ‘Ohana character breakfast).
On our most recent 6-night family trip in late June/early July, we booked 3 park days and 4 TS restaurants (MK, Epcot and DHS and Olivia’s, T-Rex, Biergarten and the ‘Ohana character breakfast again). We had our 2 young granddaughters and SonIL on both of those trips with us, as well. SonIL was also with us on our previous 4 trips.
It’s just too darn expensive now, and we don’t plan on returning anytime soon.
We’re planning on going back to cruising (non-Disney), and traveling to Europe.
Although both our DDs, SonIL, granddaughters and DWifey (she was an Air Force brat) have all been to Europe, DS and myself have not.
If we’re gonna’ drop that kinda’ money, I’d much rather visit the real Europe than walk around the fake Europe in World Showcase…!!!
seabreezept813
Well-Known Member
We're torn this year deciding where to go on vacation. Disney is easy for us with little kids but with Test Track and Big Thunder down, and nothing new to experience, we're just not sure.
Bocabear
Well-Known Member
How is it possible the numbers are down when the parks are packed and you need a reservation to get into a park? If the numbers were down, crowds would not be a problem... But everytime I go there the place is way more crowded than it was 10 years ago... Rides are more difficult to get into, Dining reservations are more difficult to get...
SouthDakotaTink
New Member
I think it is because they are less efficient at running things then they used to. Plus they don't have as much capacity as they used to with more people coming.
networkpro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
Gary, Indiana perhaps ?
UNCgolf
Well-Known Member
Boarding groups/lightning lane is part of it.
They've taken a significant number of people out of standby lines and put them elsewhere in the park, which increases crowding.
Obviously there was already some of this with FastPass, but eliminating standby entirely on a few attractions (the ones most likely to draw long lines, too) and increasing the number of LLs available exacerbated it.
Jrb1979
Well-Known Member
Reservations are only for AP holders now. Disney themselves has said attendance is down. Add in this from Thrill Data. Which is the average wait time across MK for the last year.
I think you are on to something with VQ. If 120 min worth of people (say the delta between FoP back in 2019 and the actual wait without VQ for Cosmic Rewind or the LL availability for Tron/RotR) are milling around the park it will feel more crowded. I also suspect (but am not sure) there are still far more DAS users today than there were in 2015-2019, which is another group leading to a feeling of congestion. Lastly, it wouldn’t surprise me if there is more space dedicated to LL allocations that there was in the days of physical fast pass.
JoeCamel
Well-Known Member
Indiana Dunes is beautiful.......
seabreezept813
Well-Known Member
Do love the music man, but can’t say that spot made the vacation options spreadsheet.
PREMiERdrum
Well-Known Member
The original FP system was nice because it let you be two places at once: In line for a ride and out shopping or eating.
Under the current arrangement, you can be at 3 (or more?) places at once, depending on how much you're willing to pay.
Gate clicks are decidedly down, but if 2/3rds of the guests are in multiple places at once, it can feel much busier than it actually is.
Under the current arrangement, you can be at 3 (or more?) places at once, depending on how much you're willing to pay.
Gate clicks are decidedly down, but if 2/3rds of the guests are in multiple places at once, it can feel much busier than it actually is.
Vegas Disney Fan
Well-Known Member
Purely anecdotal but I just made our dining reservations for January and I’ve never seen so many options, on previous trips I’ve had to stalk the website to get reservations at places like Be our guest, Le Cellier, etc, this trip everything was available, even Cinderella and Akershus. I’m hopeful this is a sign of a slow visit but as I didn’t bother reserving any of them either due to the prices it’s possible it’s just a sign prices are too high.
I did get Liberty Tree, Boathouse, Chefs de France (lunch), and Biergarten at the exact times I wanted though, kind of nice to be able to eat at 6pm every night rather than having dinner at 4 one night, 8 the next night, etc based on what times were available.
I did get Liberty Tree, Boathouse, Chefs de France (lunch), and Biergarten at the exact times I wanted though, kind of nice to be able to eat at 6pm every night rather than having dinner at 4 one night, 8 the next night, etc based on what times were available.
Grimley1968
Well-Known Member
PREMiERdrum
Well-Known Member
We arrive tomorrow evening - *plenty* of options still on the board.
(We're going to Summerhouse on the Lake for the first time)