Kevin Yee- Parks close one day a week?

[marni1971]

PO French was mothballed in late September 2001, as a direct response to low demand. It reopened May 31st 2002, with a refurbed Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory. Of course the biggest scar from the slowdown was POP phase 2. PO French closed for the major rehab April/May 2003 and reopened May 2004.

 

[Shiloh]

Dont think it is anything to worry about. WDW is the most visisted place on EARTH! Over 40 million people visit every year. yes, the economy is in a downturn and will probably get worse before it gets better. gas is over 4.oo per gallon, but folks, we will get used to it an deal with it. we did when it hit $2.00 a gallon. wdw is at record attendance and i doubt atendance will fall off dramatially. plus, there are the Fl. and regional people who viist often. Nothing to worry about, wdw and disneyland and the disney co. wont go bankrupt.

 

[miles1]

I don't think the article is that far off base. After reading it, I'm left with the impression that the one-per-day park closing is a "worst case scenario" that would only happen if tourism really tanked and all the previous cost-saving measures have been exhausted. If nothing else, Disney management is a group of sharp businessmen, and any good businessman would have plans in place in case of a major downturn. Let's all hope that it doesn't happen, and it probably won't, but for all those that say it can't, you probably weren't in the parks in the weeks after 9/11.

 

[csmat99]

Kevin Yee writes in his column today (http://miceage.micechat.com/kevinyee/ky061008a.htm), furthering his ongoing 'WDW is Screwed' motif. He goes on to say:

Because otherwise, another contingency plan may be enacted - brace yourself - to close down one Disney World theme park at least one day per week. The Magic Kingdom (MK) appears safe (it's such a big draw) as Epcot (E) (it has so many corporate sponsors that would demand otherwise), but Disney's Animal Kingdom (DAK) and Disney's Hollywood Studios (DHS) may well be dark, locked, and inaccessible one day a week, starting in early 2009 if attendance levels get bad enough. Obviously, the plan would be to take turns. Perhaps Monday would see DAK go dark, and more people would rush into MK, E, and DHS as a result. Then, on Tuesday, DHS would stay locked, and MK, E, and DAK would get increased traffic.
​

Regardless, this is all speculation and should be taken with a grain of salt, but I kind of like the idea- not only does it cut costs, but the park closed could get some maintenance.

Thoughts?

Not going to happen.

 

[ToTBellHop]

While I agree that closures will certainly not happen at any point in the near future, I have heard that attendance may be a bit down this fall versus last fall (however, they did VERY well last fall versus previous years), so there very well may be some hours reductions during the off season, which is no big deal to me. Park hours have always fluctuated based on attendance trends, but even after 9/11 (I mean in the weeks after, not the few days after), the parks were all open. The hours were greatly reduced, of course (I seem to remember Future World being open from 9 am to 6 pm and WS from noon to 9 pm? It's hard to remember back to that point...I certainly remember 100 Years of Magic having its opening festivities delayed by a few months). Resorts could certainly close if occupancy rates warrant that (they don't right now), but typically the first step is do merely close buildings at the resorts. I'm sure if they really needed to, they could try having the free dining plan extended (there were discounts post 9/11) which would certainly increase attendance during slow periods--the free dining, in and of itself, counteracts the increase in the cost of travel. That said, at least on the route I check out (JFK to MCO), prices are about the same as always. I understand that regional airports have seen fares sky rocketing though. Families can also consider taking the train--it's generally less stressful than flying these days, and it can be fun to see the countryside flying by without having to deal with actually driving to WDW.

 

[pheneix]

If you don't believe Disney would not take desperate measures such as this in desperate times then you have no idea how bad the economic crisis can get. If attendance nosedives by 10-15% in the 4th quarter then all options will be on the table. I'd place bets on attraction closures and theme parks running on 10-6 operating hours rather than entire theme parks closing down (would anyone really miss DHS though?).

That being said, there is no guarantee that attendance will be that bad later this year. There are a lot of trends that point to a steep decline later in the year (advance bookings have fallen off a cliff, credit crisis deepening, oil prices out of control), but it is important to note more and more people are waiting longer to book their trips in these uncertain times. I work in the vacation planning biz and I've seen hotels and restaurants that had wide open availability for the month of July have it all filled up in the past few weeks. The times are what they are.

Still, with airlines halting flights and oil making road trips out of reach for many families there is no doubt a downturn in tourism will happen. It is not a matter of IF but WHEN. Count on it, take it to the bank, whatever you gotta do. It is gonna happen.

 

[Mr.EPCOT]

(would anyone really miss DHS though?)

Hey, I'd miss any theme park that'd close! Even Animal Kingdom. Although, it'd just be one day every week or two.

 

[wedway71]

This is what I see happening.

Even if numbers drop I dont see any closures.

What I do see is the Disney Marketing Machine focusing its efforts more on locals and Regionals.
We will see more "Weekend Getaway Deals" to keep the rooms filled.

Alot more Ad saturation in Miami Herald,Sun-Sentinal,News Press,Tampa Tribune etc.

Lets face it,If people were wearing Mouse Ears just weeks after Americans thought the World came to an End after 9/11 then we will still wear Mouse Ears with these time as well.

 

[DisneyJoe]

but for all those that say it can't, you probably weren't in the parks in the weeks after 9/11.

I was in the parks 9/22-29/2001, and Disney didn't close any parks then; they reduced hours and some events, but didn't close any parks.

I'm not saying can't or won't - I'm saying that things would need to be a LOT worse than 9/11 levels for them to resort to closing a park - even for a day a week.

Don't forget, WDW offered the 7 for 4 and 7 for 5 vacation packages in response to the 9/11 downturn in tourism, and AP and other general public room only rates were plentiful.

 

[maryszhi]

Kevin Yee writes in his column today (http://miceage.micechat.com/kevinyee/ky061008a.htm), furthering his ongoing 'WDW is Screwed' motif. He goes on to say:

Because otherwise, another contingency plan may be enacted - brace yourself - to close down one Disney World theme park at least one day per week. The Magic Kingdom (MK) appears safe (it's such a big draw) as Epcot (E) (it has so many corporate sponsors that would demand otherwise), but Disney's Animal Kingdom (DAK) and Disney's Hollywood Studios (DHS) may well be dark, locked, and inaccessible one day a week, starting in early 2009 if attendance levels get bad enough. Obviously, the plan would be to take turns. Perhaps Monday would see DAK go dark, and more people would rush into MK, E, and DHS as a result. Then, on Tuesday, DHS would stay locked, and MK, E, and DAK would get increased traffic.
​

Regardless, this is all speculation and should be taken with a grain of salt, but I kind of like the idea- not only does it cut costs, but the park closed could get some maintenance.

Thoughts?

i highly doubt it. unless disney goes down the tubes, which i doubt, this will never happen. if it were, it would most likely be disneyland

 

[DisneyMusician2]

Does he get this stuff from fortune cookies?

Ridiculous.

 

[Mick G.]

I heard that if the economy slows down, they might even consider keeping half of Epcot closed every day until almost lunchtime. And then they may close the other half as early as 7 pm. And then they might start closing the MK early some nights, for special parties that you have to pay extra for.

No, seriously, every big company prepares contingency plans, so that when the unexpected happens, they have a plan. And Kevin does have a point, that a few months ago $4 gas seemed inconceivable. Now it's all too real. And WDW does have more of a transportation infrastructure to support than other parks.

Who knows, they may have to cut prices to the point that a trip to WDW becomes affordable again. In any case, we're planning a trip in October.

 

[ChrisFL]

This is what I see happening.

Even if numbers drop I dont see any closures.

What I do see is the Disney Marketing Machine focusing its efforts more on locals and Regionals.
We will see more "Weekend Getaway Deals" to keep the rooms filled.

Alot more Ad saturation in Miami Herald,Sun-Sentinal,News Press,Tampa Tribune etc.

Lets face it,If people were wearing Mouse Ears just weeks after Americans thought the World came to an End after 9/11 then we will still wear Mouse Ears with these time as well.

I agree, Busch Gardens and other regional parks do amazing business with local traffic with good deals. All Disney needs to do is offer an inexpensive florida resident price for AP's and they'd have plenty of guests that don't need bus transportation everywhere

 

[maryszhi]

its a shame,but thanks to the economy, it might be in disneys favor. i mean if you think about it, people are starting to cut back, and not take trips. this will hurt disney unless it does the park thing, and offer incentives and discounts

 

[JimboJones123]

Usually I'm the first one to say "Back off, it's just an article, and it has a few valid points to start discussion."

But this time, no.

This is silly. This is the opposite of logic. $$$ comes in. Demand goes up. Tear away the suppy and lower the quality of the experience??? Wild and this one really becomes an eyesore. I hope for his sake, this is glossed over and not brought up again.

If nothing, higher gas prices will encourage guests to take longer trips instead of shorter trips. And locals will be offered deeper discounts at the resorts to make weekend long trips instead of taking a 4+ hour drive each way. This could work out better for WDW in the long run.

 

[wondersofdave89]

Kevin Yee is the poor man's Jim Hill. He has a fraction of the notoriety with twice the nonsense. Yes we're in a recession. I doubt that we will see the parks be on a reduced schedule because of it.

 

[jmicro59]

I'm sorry but I'm going to have to agree with Mr. Yee on this. I can see it now, parks will be empty and CM's will be begging visitors to stay on the attractions so they won't get sent home. Mr. Yee' bold perdiction will occur in July of 2008. July 18th right thru to the 27th to be exact. You hear me, stay away from WDW during that time frame, every last one of you. :ROFLOL:

And no this has nothing to do with our annual July trip and trying to reduce the crowd size while we are there... Well ok maybe it does.

Oh and Mr. Yee needs to get back on his meds. We were down in WDW two weeks after 9/11, drove down in an RV and the crowds were there. Granted they were not as heavy as normal for that time frame but the people still came. If people are planning a trip to WDW then $4 a gallon gas prices are not going to stop them, it jsut means there will be more people staying offsite or at the AS or PoP.

 

[TubaGeek]

Ha! Oh, silly internet people.
When you give a man a webpage he's going to want a moronic story to go with it.

 

[SeanC]

Yee is the guy who complained there was ACTUAL sea life in the ACTUAL ocean at Disney's Castaway Cay where the cruise ships stop...:shrug:

 

[ryguy]

If you don't believe Disney would not take desperate measures such as this in desperate times then you have no idea how bad the economic crisis can get. If attendance nosedives by 10-15% in the 4th quarter then all options will be on the table. I'd place bets on attraction closures and theme parks running on 10-6 operating hours rather than entire theme parks closing down (would anyone really miss DHS though?).

That being said, there is no guarantee that attendance will be that bad later this year. There are a lot of trends that point to a steep decline later in the year (advance bookings have fallen off a cliff, credit crisis deepening, oil prices out of control), but it is important to note more and more people are waiting longer to book their trips in these uncertain times. I work in the vacation planning biz and I've seen hotels and restaurants that had wide open availability for the month of July have it all filled up in the past few weeks. The times are what they are.

Still, with airlines halting flights and oil making road trips out of reach for many families there is no doubt a downturn in tourism will happen. It is not a matter of IF but WHEN. Count on it, take it to the bank, whatever you gotta do. It is gonna happen.

Well said. No matter if your rich or poor things aren't great right now. Keep in mind when people are struggling most will cut out traveling first, its something that is easy to eliminate when trying to trim a budget.
I am afraid to see what the economy will look like in September. That will dictate what happens in the fall and early 2009. For all our sakes I hope things get better.