Pricing the crowds away

[Dreamers Empire]

I don't necessarily disagree with the rest of your post... as Disney gets more expensive we are going less often and cutting back on some extras to control costs but if it means lower crowds we will likely enjoy the trips we do take more.

But comparing current-day trips to past trips? In terms of value for your vacation dollar there is no comparison. It's relevant because Disney built their immense theme park popularity on quality + fair pricing which equals exceptional value. Today prices are much higher, quality is a little lower so the value is nowhere near what it once was.

Absolutely agreed there! My point is that they now have a crowd control issue that we all experience, and as others have said I'd rather pay more and go less if I felt like I could breathe there. I got so log jammed at Happily Ever After and good luck getting on FOP. I threw out my fifth theme park suggestion because I believe they will need it in the next 10 years just to handle the growth. But as they no longer have a visionary like Walt and its about the bottom line, they are forced to increase prices. Oh well..

 

[thomas998]

I think what needs to be said here is that Disney likely wants their parks close to capacity year-round. This allows them to sell their their food, alcohol, and merch to the greatest number of visitors. They will continue to raise prices, but never to the extent which would allow those prices to tame demand. Where this is a problem for me (and others) is that Disney and I disagree with point at which their park experience is oversold -that point where demand would signal a corresponding price increase. To me, this is the worst of both worlds because the price continues to creep despite the fact that the experience doesn't improve anywhere near proportionately.

Sadly I think you are right.