The Spirited Back Nine ...

[Mike S]

Wow, great stuff. The following paragraph jumped out at me from that article:


"Food prices at WDW are surprisingly low considering the quality and presentation of the menu"

Nowadays I don't think anyone would argue with changing that word 'low' to 'high', and that sentence making perfect sense.

This one jumped out at me.

Nothing is done half way. It's either done right or not at all. And hang the expense.

And to think they were a much smaller company back then compared to the giant they are today.

 

[NearTheEars]

And then there are those of us who tried them and find while SGE has too much chili dog residue, MM- is truly the worst thing to happen to WDW in a LONG time,

This trip spent 3 hours first day at GR because while Premier Pass showed active and valid, Would not admit of course could not make FP+ reservations either, One of kids in party had MB "stacked" this was a new one to me so no FP for him either till we got that fixed. Did not do many rides this trip did the baby swap thing for others in party because I wanted to spend time with family not GR.

Its certainly to fair to pass judgement when you've experienced it. I hope that some day they get your account fixed. It's awful that they can't help you.

But back to the food. The next time I see jokes about the obese, I'm just going post pictures of these death fries.

 

[NearTheEars]

But I saw tons of retail space devoted to magic bands for which there was no interest from shoppers even for the 24.95 Frozen MB. Yet Olaf and Sven plushies flew off the shelves, A Sven went home with us.

I'm starting to think TWDC thinks the MB is a lot more popular than it is in reality, Saw lots of grey MB's and very few colored ones which says either the majority of guests are non-US or people are not bothering to 'customize' their MB or a combination of both.

I think them trying to push the bands as a big selling point for a WDW vacation is silly. It's a ticket medium plus some extras, not an attraction. The other merch should have just been icing on the cake if people bought it.

Sure, tout it's features on the planning DVD, but lets not make Tshirts.

 

[GrandRoyale]

Wow, great stuff. The following paragraph jumped out at me from that article:


"Food prices at WDW are surprisingly low considering the quality and presentation of the menu"

Nowadays I don't think anyone would argue with changing that word 'low' to 'high', and that sentence making perfect sense.

I know this will be an unpopular opinion but I actually agree with the article. Being home in Orlando for the holidays, I went to three Disney parks over the course of the last couple weeks and thought the food was much better and cheaper than I expected.

That's not to say the food was five-star or cheap, but better than typical theme park fare. The table servcie restaurants were all fantastic, and the counter services I stopped by were surprisingly good. For reference, I liked the turkey sandwich at Cosmic Ray's (which was large enough that I couldn't finish it), the boneless buffalo wings at Backlot Express, and fish/shrimp at ABC Comissary. All good size, fair price, and good quality.

 

[Cesar R M]

You would think burgers would be the easiest food to make at Disney. I can make better burgers. They're just not seasoned well. And sometimes the meat is tough.

or the buns are cold. :|

 

[Cesar R M]

It WAS that castle float. And it's like 30 years... I think I've seen a picture of Dumbo on it in like 1982 or something. It will outlive us all.

dear god.. they're still using it??? D:

 

[Cesar R M]

Good comparison. Five Guys really is a step above fast food. In-N-Out blows away any fast food place out there.

I envy you guys, the only sort of premium burgers around.. is Carl Jr's . Which are very decent.
The other "higher end" burgers are only from outback and hooters.

No one with any sense orders a QS burger at Disney.

In my defence... I was naive and it was my first time at WDW.
I think ill just go to get a Lobster roll

 

[Cesar R M]

No one with any sense orders a QS burger at Disney.

In my defence... I was naive and it was my first time.

I don't know if I'd call MyMagic+ the worst thing to happen at WDW in a long time. Opinions seem to be decidedly mixed. There are many who genuinely are happy with it. It seems like a natural for those who already enjoy planning their ADRs 180 days out.

The bigger question is whether MyMagic+ has been a financial success.

So far, the answer is ‘no’.

To appreciate MyMagic+’s tepid performance, it’s helpful to compare the current fiscal year’s results with baseline results from previous years. Let’s look at Parks & Resorts (P&R) domestic results since 2011:

Revenue Annual Growth

• 2011-2013 average: 10.7%
• 2014: 8.2%

Per Capita Guest Spending (PCGS) Annual Growth

• 2011-2013 average: 7.7%
• 2014: 7.0%

Per Room Guest Spending (PRGS) Annual Growth

• 2011-2013 average: 6.0%
• 2014: 4.9%

Rather than improve performance, growth has slowed in MyMagic+’s first year of use.

It’s doubtful that this slowing is a result of MyMagic+. Rather, it’s likely the result of other business decisions made in the years leading up to MyMagic+.

From 2011 to 2013, Disney aggressively increased prices at the theme parks, much faster than consumer income. As a result, theme park spending slowed in 2014 even as Disney unveiled MyMagic+, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (SDMT), and Frozen-themed offerings. People simply could not afford to pay Disney’s higher prices, no matter what Disney offered.

Demand was there. Both WDW and Universal saw record crowds this summer while Orlando area hotels had a bumper year in a slowly improving economy. SDMT, Frozen, and Diagon Alley were popular draws.

However, MyMagic+ (which was intended to increase per person spending) was largely ineffective because WDW’s customer base could not keep pace with Disney’s price increases.

A lot of this is timing. If corporate Disney had deferred the 2011-2013 price increases to coincide with the launch of MyMagic+, MyMagic+ could have been declared a major success. Instead, Disney pretty much guaranteed MyMagic+’s sagging performance through its earlier decisions.

MyMagic+ wasn’t a bad idea; however, it was poorly executed. MyMagic+ was an incredibly complex project, well outside of Disney’s comfort zone, and Disney leadership had a difficult time managing it. Its costs grossly overran budget, while the system continues to experience numerous technical glitches.

Disney executives jumped on the MyMagic+ bandwagon in part because they lacked the background necessary to fully understand its many intricate parts.

MyMagic+ appealed to Disney executives because of how its costs were structured. Unlike traditional brick-and-mortar attractions, MyMagic+’s costs were buried in other P&R expenses; over $1 billion in operating expense (opex) plus another $500 million in selling, general & administrative expense (SG&A). A relatively modest $400 million was spent as capital expenditures (capex). This appealed to executives responsible for green-lighting MyMagic+ since their compensation packages were (and still are) designed to discourage capex investments.

MyMagic+ should have been used to draw Guests onsite. Magic Bands should have remained an exclusive onsite-only perk while numbers from the one quarter when MyMagic+ was an onsite only benefit suggest that it significantly increased hotel occupancy.

Under the right circumstances, MyMagic+ could have been a rousing success. However, between the 2011-2013 price increases, the inability to control costs or manage its complexities, and the decision to minimize onsite vs. offsite benefits, MyMagic+ has proven to be an expense gimmick with disappointing financial returns.

you forgot one key thing.. DVC.. DVC EVERYWHERE!
I think everyone who is smart is now renting DVC than stay at the deluxes.

 

[Cesar R M]

Thought this was as good a place as any for this. Don't know if there's anything new in here - many of you will know one way or another.

Front page of today's O'Sentinel, by Sandra Pedicini. I'd post a link but it's behind a paywall.

Headline & a few relevant paragraphs (as determined by me):

MyMagic+ on its way to other Disney parks

"The billion-dollar project has faced challenges. The initial rollout took longer than expected. Some guests complain they feel pressured to micromanage their vacation planning. Costs associated with MyMagic+ continue to cut into profit, though less than a year ago. Disney executives say they are seeing benefits, though, and it is getting high ratings from customers."

"It's obviously a pretty complicated enterprise to keep running every day, and laying on new tools and new technologies is not easy, but we're actually really, really pleased with how it's working and how it's been received by our guests," said Tom Staggs, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, in a recent interview.

As Disney brings elements of MyMagic+ into its other theme parks, Staggs said, visitors should not expect carbon copies of the program launched here."

"MyMagic+ was really built to evolve, " Staggs said. "So while it's fully rolled out in Walt Disney World, we're still looking at ways we can add additional features … That fleshing out will continue for some time, maybe forever."

"Half of Disney World guests are using MagicBands and about 90 percent of them have given it very good or excellent ratings."

"Disney won't say exactly how much it has spent on the project. Asked about online speculation that the system went over budget, Staggs said its first "defined" phase actually came in slightly under. Now, he said, the project is in "sort of the endless phase" that isn't lumped into one budget."

I wonder how many of them gave excellent reviews thanks to the skewed and manipulated surveys.

 

[Cesar R M]

Its certainly to fair to pass judgement when you've experienced it. I hope that some day they get your account fixed. It's awful that they can't help you.

But back to the food. The next time I see jokes about the obese, I'm just going post pictures of these death fries.

I honestly find more disgusting to see extremely obese people slurping a giant 2Kilos mayo bottle with a big spoon.
Or consuming a 1 Kg cheese slice by biting.

 

[RSoxNo1]

So far, Metro Orlando hotel occupancy is up 4% in 2014, the same as WDW.

When multiple variables change as they did in 2014, it's nearly impossible to assign any change to specific causes. However, since WDW hotels fared the same as Orlando area hotels, and since hotels near WDW had higher occupancy rates than Disney hotels, it seems safe to suggest that nothing Disney did affected the ratio of onsite vs. offsite Guest.

My opinion is that an improving economy, SDMT, Frozen-at-the-parks, and Diagon Alley all helped improve the Orlando tourism industry in 2014.

I'm doubtful that MyMagic+ contributed significantly. Certainly, Iger and Rasulo would have trumpeted MyMagic+ if they could have pointed to something concrete. Instead, it was more of the same old "still in ramp-up mode" message we've been hearing for 2 years; difficult to swallow when every single Guest has access to MyMagic+.

I'm not sure Disney ever was able to successfully advertise the benefits of MyMagic+ to the general public. MyMagic+ is difficult to explain and I never thought its 30-second spots were effective. It's easier to show a new roller coaster (e.g. SDMT) than a 60 vs. 30-day advanced FastPass+ selection advantage. The MyMagic+ ads I viewed were moronic.

Disneyphiles (like us) debated the pros and cons of MyMagic+ endlessly, but I sense it never caught the public's fancy the way Frozen-at-the-parks or Diagon Alley did.

SDMT's huge lines show the public craves new attractions. Upcoming enhancements at DAK and DHS will be extremely popular.

Disney's greatest risk is its long development cycles. Historically, amusement park goers defer visits once they hear something new is in the works, and the upcoming big announcement at DHS could hurt WDW's numbers for a few years. Disney is wise to pretend nothing is happening for as long as possible.

Those of us old enough to well remember the 1980s and 1990s learned to plan trips every year because we knew we'd see something new every visit. Today's low investment levels are teaching Disney fans that it's OK to go multiple years between trips.

For that reason, I think it's more than reasonable to cut the advanced booking component. Keep it as a digital enhancement to the Fastpass system whereby in park kiosks and smart phones can help plan out your day upon arrival, but the "lock in" approach should die a painful death. Sure, there are those that like it, but there are far more that are dumbfounded by how ridiculous a premise it is to begin with.

They've spent the money on the infrastructure that was designed to do one thing (entice guests to stay on property). That one thing didn't really work, but it doesn't mean the infrastructure improvement can't benefit the guests. They used to do things that enhanced the guest experience before and that was more favorably met than My Magic + ever was. Turn it into something entitled to satisfy those guests. Give them surprise Fastpasses like the paper machines used to do. Give guests dining or merchandise coupons like what occasionally appears on receipts. Take advantage of what you've built in a way that truly adds value.

 

[Quinnmac000]

I honestly wonder if Disney planned to replace The future world in Epcot with San Fransokyo from Big Hero 6 alonng with that Tomorrowland movie. As both those films are all about invention, progress, etc and then Inside Out for Cranium Command.

Would make sense...but may be reading into things too much.

 

[Tony Perkis]

I honestly wonder if Disney planned to replace The future world in Epcot with San Fransokyo from Big Hero 6 alonng with that Tomorrowland movie. As both those films are all about invention, progress, etc and then Inside Out for Cranium Command.

Would make sense...but may be reading into things too much.

You are. Disney is not replacing Future World with overlays of two films.

 

[ford91exploder]

For that reason, I think it's more than reasonable to cut the advanced booking component. Keep it as a digital enhancement to the Fastpass system whereby in park kiosks and smart phones can help plan out your day upon arrival, but the "lock in" approach should die a painful death. Sure, there are those that like it, but there are far more that are dumbfounded by how ridiculous a premise it is to begin with.

They've spent the money on the infrastructure that was designed to do one thing (entice guests to stay on property). That one thing didn't really work, but it doesn't mean the infrastructure improvement can't benefit the guests. They used to do things that enhanced the guest experience before and that was more favorably met than My Magic + ever was. Turn it into something entitled to satisfy those guests. Give them surprise Fastpasses like the paper machines used to do. Give guests dining or merchandise coupons like what occasionally appears on receipts. Take advantage of what you've built in a way that truly adds value.

The problem here is MM+ was never designed to give value to the customer the preplanning aspect was designed to allow Disney to manage staffing levels so I don't ever see that going away. The staff management aspect is also why this is not a onsite only perk.

We will only see guest centric additions after a major change in management at TWDC, Right now expect more changes which are detrimental to the guest experience yet have a positive short term effect on the bottom line

Things like reservation only rides and QS meals.

 

[ParentsOf4]

you forgot one key thing.. DVC.. DVC EVERYWHERE!
I think everyone who is smart is now renting DVC than stay at the deluxes.

DVC sales will total over $300 million this year, an incredible number, especially since the costs of those sales are only a fraction of that.

Is it really any wonder that Disney is going to build "DVC everywhere"?

Meanwhile, consumers are buying Disney's sales pitch that DVC "saves money".

Someone paying $165/point at the Villas at the Grand Floridian (VGF), financing it for 10 years at Disney's double-digit interest rates, and then paying VGF's high points-per-night rate will actually end up spending more over the next 30 years than if they just paid cash every year to stay at WDW Deluxe Resorts like the Yacht & Beach Club.

It's an incredible indictment of the ignorance of today's WDW consumer. They are throwing away money as they gullibly swallow Disney's sales pitch hook, line, and sinker.

 

[Kamikaze]

Someone paying $165/point at the Villas at the Grand Floridian (VGF), financing it for 10 years at Disney's double-digit interest rates, and then paying VGF's high points-per-night rate will actually end up spending more over the next 30 years than if they just paid cash every year to stay at WDW Deluxe Resorts like the Yacht & Beach Club.

Only problem with your logic here is that you don't know what rack rate will be in two years, or 10 years, never mind 30. You think the original buyers at OKW and BVW are spending more per night when they go to WDW in 2014 than if they were booking rooms normally?

 

[ford91exploder]

Don't be silly, Kim-Jong Staggs' guest surveys have a whole range of possible answers. You can also rate your vacation experience 'magical', 'beyond magical' or 'outstanding'.

I do love these surveys absolutely no chance for negative feedback so Disney can crow about 100% guest satisfaction. Just like dictatorships with only the dictator on the ballot.

 

[ford91exploder]

Its certainly to fair to pass judgement when you've experienced it. I hope that some day they get your account fixed. It's awful that they can't help you.

But back to the food. The next time I see jokes about the obese, I'm just going post pictures of these death fries.

As do I but since it got corrupted in early MM+ testing I was there during some of the original testing and nothing account wise has been right since. From a IT Governance standpoint using live data in system testing is about the biggest mistake you can make.

There is apparently no mechanism to delete existing and create a NEW account if you are DVC because DVC ties ownership data to your Disney account.

It's ok to use a shadow copy and in fact most enterprise data stores like EMC and NetApp have features which enable this.

From the outside MM+ deployment looks deeply flawed as 2 years in the new system has less functionality than the original and far from being the only token needed in the park for ID still requires you to carry ticket media if you hold AP and DVC card and photo ID for discounts etc

AP used to have printed name now it's done with sharpie Strictly amateur hour from a it perspective

 

[ParentsOf4]

Only problem with your logic here is that you don't know what rack rate will be in two years, or 10 years, never mind 30. You think the original buyers at OKW and BVW are spending more per night when they go to WDW in 2014 than if they were booking rooms normally?

I'm very familiar with WDW hotel rack rates and DVC prices throughout the decades.

In recent years, WDW's rack rates have stabilized as the disparity between the costs of staying onsite versus offsite have grown.

Before arriving in Orlando, consumers comparison shop and go with what works best for them. As a result of this comparison shopping, WDW hotel occupancy rates have declined, forcing Disney to keep hotel price increases in check, meaning WDW rack rates have increased at appreciably slower rates than other WDW prices.

After arriving in Orlando, many consumers go into what I call "vacation mode" and throw common sense out the window. "I'm on vacation. It's OK to pay $34.95 for a t-shirt."

Some act the same way when buying timeshares (including DVC), which are notoriously bad investments. It's one thing to pay too much for a t-shirt or meal. It's quite another to do so for a purchase costing tens-of-thousands of dollars.

As we've seen with everything at the theme parks in recent years, price increases have far outpaced consumer income. Someone buying at OKW or BWV decades ago paid considerably less than someone buying VGF today.

For example, someone buying at BWV in 2002 would have paid $65/point to get access to rooms starting at 10 points/night. Meanwhile, median household income was about $43K.

Someone buying today at VGF is paying $165/point (yes, $100/point more) to get access to rooms starting at 17 points/night. Today's median household income is about $52K.

So, at a time when DVC purchase prices have increased by 150% and points-per-night by 70%, consumer income has increased by only about 20%.

 

[ford91exploder]

DVC sales will total over $300 million this year, an incredible number, especially since the costs of those sales are only a fraction of that.

Is it really any wonder that Disney is going to build "DVC everywhere"?

Meanwhile, consumers are buying Disney's sales pitch that DVC "saves money".

Someone paying $165/point at the Villas at the Grand Floridian (VGF), financing it for 10 years at Disney's double-digit interest rates, and then paying VGF's high points-per-night rate will actually end up spending more over the next 30 years than if they just paid cash every year to stay at WDW Deluxe Resorts like the Yacht & Beach Club.

It's an incredible indictment of the ignorance of today's WDW consumer. They are throwing away money as they gullibly swallow Disney's sales pitch hook, line, and sinker.

And VGF points just went up to 175, to think I paid $95 with incentives for BLT points DIRECT from Disney price increases recently are at insane levels.