lebeau
Well-Known Member
Let them. I'm not going down with the ship. Not when there is a Universal life boat sitting right there.
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Ticket Price Increase - Feb 2014
- Thread starter MissM
- Start date
Let them. I'm not going down with the ship. Not when there is a Universal life boat sitting right there.
wogwog
Well-Known Member
Good idea and add take a sack lunch. Sit at one of the tables in one of the QSR eating dumps in the park.
note2001
Well-Known Member
The year after MK opened my family went camping at Ft W. I can vividly recall being a young child, standing in Tomorrowland bored to tears. I wasn't tired, I was full out bored. To me, the MK was all about shows. COP, Hall of presidents, some odd thing where the seats puffed up, and the worst part of it all, we had seemingly forever waits just to get into these shows. The skyway line was infathomly long. I remember my mom was teaching me to read time and we stood there for over an hour. I don't recall seeing a single character a little one would enjoy. My dad kept hitting the ticket booth and grumbled about not having enough, I didn't usually pick up on those things back then, but he was quite upset with the prices. All I wanted was to ride Peterpan, Flights of wonder, the train in the campground, and the boats back to the fort.
Just a funny comparison.
Just a funny comparison.
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Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
That's always said as if there is a quota sheet somewhere and a waiting list just packed with people wanting to get permission to go to WDW. There is no filling a void because a void already exists unless they are at capacity every single day of the year.
They have not noticed that the numbers of "old timers" may have dropped because there are a wealth of people that haven't been before or because the natural ebb and flow of the attendance kind of covers up the fact that there are some that are no longer going there that once did. New people are born everyday. What that all means is if the attendance today were 10,000 and you were one of them, without you there would be 9,999. They will not be able to create a new person to "fill that void". If others were going to be there, they would be there anyway, with or without you. Those with AP's although they sometimes think that they should be valued at a higher level then everyone else, seem to forget that if they go enough the amount of money that Disney receives to provide them the same thing that others pay $100.00 for is greatly diminish with every visit. Probably explains why they have priced AP's almost to the point of not worth it to many people. As for someone like myself, I stay offsite, at least used to buy my tickets in non-expire block manner, eat only at the counter service and never, ever buy souvenir's. They are pricing it so I cannot do that anymore either. What they don't seem to remember is that I go down there to visit WDW, primarily! I have tickets prepaid. They get to use that money without ever providing any service until I get there. If they also try to remember that when I pull out of my hotel parking lot I can turn the steering wheel any direction I chose. I can head for the bazillion other attractions in the central and coastal Florida area.
It wouldn't be a noticeable change to begin with, but, over time it can be significant. Every single person that spends a day or two at Universal instead of Disney is a day or two admission, food and possible souvenir sales loss. If they get to the point that they are not meeting their quota in room rentals, which is more then likely before to long. Then they start to have those big bucks missing and that will bite them really hard. It's already starting to happen on a small scale. The empty rooms are at a dangerous high point prompting the massive discount and TV advertising that hardly even mentions the parks but push for how great it is just to be in the resort.
So my point is that for the moment Disney has a finite number of guests that can and will show up on any given day. There is no filling the void. If that void gets big enough it will get their attention. So when it is said to "vote with your wallet", it may take some time for it to show up, but it will.
Lucky
Well-Known Member
Exactly right. The only way for Disney to fully replace people who vote with their wallets is to charge a lower price than it otherwise would.
Of course any one family's decision to quit going won't affect anything, but as you say if enough people make the same decision it will.
alphac2005
Well-Known Member
It was even on the BBC News crawl yesterday during the news.
Kevo
Member
Disney are doing the right thing I guess.
Even though I am shocked to say that, they are in a very strong position and need to make the most of their market as profitably as possible. It might not always be as easy for them as it is right now to demand higher prices year on year. With the wealth they create, I guess the parks of the future will become bigger and better. There's 42,000 acres out there to be filled at some point, and I honestly think it will be!
A monorail connecting every single resort and theme park would be fabulous.
It will of course cost a fortune! Maybe not in my lifetime but perhaps my kids'.
As a more light hearted thought, this blog did make me laugh, at the thought of toilet roll dispensers being operated by magicbands linked to our credit cards! LMAO!
http://magicaldisneyworldblog.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/disney-ticket-prices-to-infinity-and-beyond/
Even though I am shocked to say that, they are in a very strong position and need to make the most of their market as profitably as possible. It might not always be as easy for them as it is right now to demand higher prices year on year. With the wealth they create, I guess the parks of the future will become bigger and better. There's 42,000 acres out there to be filled at some point, and I honestly think it will be!
A monorail connecting every single resort and theme park would be fabulous.
It will of course cost a fortune! Maybe not in my lifetime but perhaps my kids'.
As a more light hearted thought, this blog did make me laugh, at the thought of toilet roll dispensers being operated by magicbands linked to our credit cards! LMAO!
http://magicaldisneyworldblog.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/disney-ticket-prices-to-infinity-and-beyond/
lebeau
Well-Known Member
I see you're new. Welcome.
Problem is, Disney isn't reinvesting. They are paying those fat profits out as fat bonuses. Your kids aren't ever going to see that monorail expansion. But they may see the monorail decommissioned due to neglect. Disney isn't raising prices to save for a bigger, better future. The explanation is short term, not long term. It's quarterly to be specific. Those spreadsheets need to look good for the shareholders. That is it.
Yes, Disney should maximize profitability. In the long run, fleecing your client base will not maximize profitability. Disney has lost sight of this.
BrittanyRose428
Well-Known Member
Not to deter anyone from reading my blog since I've just posted this there, but I just looked up the prices for some other entertainment venues and this is what I found:
Museum of Fine Arts (Boston): $25
Codzilla (40 minute ride): $29
Canobie Lake Park General Admission: $36
Water Country General Admission: $38.99
Cinderella (Boston Ballet- rear seating): $39
Six Flags New England General Admission: $69.99
Dennis Parasail (Cape Code) 8-12 min. ride: $89
Universal 1 day ticket: $92
Rear Mezzanine ticket for Wicked on Broadway: $97.20
Magic Kingdom 1 day ticket: $99
One Direction Concert ticket: $117.90
Red Sox Ticket (field box): $140
Cinderella (Boston Ballet-front seating): $147
Front Mezzanine ticket for Wicked on Broadway: $184.95
Sky Dive New England (1 jump): $229
My conclusion is that yes, the Magic Kingdom ticket is expensive, but really the problem is that everything is expensive. I would pay the extra $20 to go to MK over 6 flags, and as much as I love Wicked the worst seats for a 2-2.5 hour production are only about $2 cheaper than a 1 day ticket in MK.
Museum of Fine Arts (Boston): $25
Codzilla (40 minute ride): $29
Canobie Lake Park General Admission: $36
Water Country General Admission: $38.99
Cinderella (Boston Ballet- rear seating): $39
Six Flags New England General Admission: $69.99
Dennis Parasail (Cape Code) 8-12 min. ride: $89
Universal 1 day ticket: $92
Rear Mezzanine ticket for Wicked on Broadway: $97.20
Magic Kingdom 1 day ticket: $99
One Direction Concert ticket: $117.90
Red Sox Ticket (field box): $140
Cinderella (Boston Ballet-front seating): $147
Front Mezzanine ticket for Wicked on Broadway: $184.95
Sky Dive New England (1 jump): $229
My conclusion is that yes, the Magic Kingdom ticket is expensive, but really the problem is that everything is expensive. I would pay the extra $20 to go to MK over 6 flags, and as much as I love Wicked the worst seats for a 2-2.5 hour production are only about $2 cheaper than a 1 day ticket in MK.
Kevo
Member
Thank you lebeau, that is really kind of you!
I have very mixed feelings. The parks aren't as well developed as they should be, and I always feel that Hollywood Studios in particular feels a little tired, but as I write so too Animal Kingdom and Epcot.
We were really gutted by Test Track's 'uplift' so I do accept your point. Disney have lost sight, but if they are going to pull off some big investments, it is going to probably hurt us all even more!
Everyone is hyped up about the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and I guess it will be great, but it just seems a small step in comparison to Universal's Diagon Alley from a guests point of view.
As mentioned, very mixed up about it, and we won't know if Disney are doing the right thing for a few more years!
With the info I know, this number IS accurate. Before someone comes to call foul.
NomeKing88
Member
Everyone is saying "Disney can raise prices all they want, there will still be rubes willing to pay… It won't matter if you vote with your wallet and take your vaca dollars to Universal instead, because someone else will happily take your place…"
Reeeeally? I'm surprised nobody has talked about "bad word of mouth" yet. That is something ANY company should be afraid of. All it takes is one family to come back home from their WDW trip and spew all of the ridiculous things they had to put up with to their friends, family, coworkers…
"It was insanely expensive! Even the food was horribly overpriced and it was GARBAGE! The rides were okay but seemed like they'e been sitting there for decades; some parks only had, like, five rides! The lines were too long… Hour and a Half line to meet a princess character!? And this magic band nonsense! We just wanted to go on some rides, not wait in lines to PLAN our day!"
I'm assuming this has been happening for years with dissatisfied customers returning from their (probably 1st,2nd, or 3rd) WDW visit and letting everyone in their lives know it wasn't worth it. And now that there's this Magic Band crud ruining people's vacations since december of last year, I'm sure that has only amplified bad word of mouth.
Meanwhile at Universal…
Reeeeally? I'm surprised nobody has talked about "bad word of mouth" yet. That is something ANY company should be afraid of. All it takes is one family to come back home from their WDW trip and spew all of the ridiculous things they had to put up with to their friends, family, coworkers…
"It was insanely expensive! Even the food was horribly overpriced and it was GARBAGE! The rides were okay but seemed like they'e been sitting there for decades; some parks only had, like, five rides! The lines were too long… Hour and a Half line to meet a princess character!? And this magic band nonsense! We just wanted to go on some rides, not wait in lines to PLAN our day!"
I'm assuming this has been happening for years with dissatisfied customers returning from their (probably 1st,2nd, or 3rd) WDW visit and letting everyone in their lives know it wasn't worth it. And now that there's this Magic Band crud ruining people's vacations since december of last year, I'm sure that has only amplified bad word of mouth.
Meanwhile at Universal…
AndyS2992
Well-Known Member
I'm actually quite glad the price has gone up, hopefully it will deter the riff raff from coming in their droves and keep crowd levels down.
But yes, raising prices yet taken many things away and neglecting other things is very bad value for money and a little frustrating since it isn't justified but the parks are getting a little crowded lately so hopefully they let up a bit now but I doubt it.
But yes, raising prices yet taken many things away and neglecting other things is very bad value for money and a little frustrating since it isn't justified but the parks are getting a little crowded lately so hopefully they let up a bit now but I doubt it.
kap91
Well-Known Member
Thanks for putting it in perspective. That's generally what I bring up with my friends who question WDW's ticket prices. It's not that its not expensive - it is, but its also not really not worth it. It's also worth noting that the most guests do not pay the one day price. They'll buy multi-day tickets which become a much better deal. Sucks for locals that only want to go for one day - but WDW has never particularly catered to them - and they do have the florida resident deal occasionally. I'd like them to price a one day ticket at $50 and not give discounts for multiple days -but that wouldn't be a terribly good business model would it?
Also this is just a theory - and I say its about 50/50 to whether its accurate or not. But it seems to me that now that WDW has finally hit the $100 threshold - they're likely to hold ticket prices at $99 for as long as they possibly think they can to avoid crossing that psychological barrier.
ParentsOf4
Well-Known Member
The price of any consumer good or service is highly complicated affair based on many factors.
I don't say it's OK to pay $1000 for my tie because I paid $1000 for my suit, yet both are items I wear.
Comparing a theme park with a Broadway play or a sporting event is dubious at best, completely misleading at worse.
Fenway Park, for example, sells out nearly all of its games. Over the course of a year, the Magic Kingdom runs at less than half of its theoretical capacity.
WDW's hotels average 5,700 empty rooms per night. Does that mean Disney is going to lower its prices?
WDW is an amusement park and should be compared with other amusement parks.
Oh and, by the way, a Six Flags New England Season Pass is $69.99 if bought individually, $59,99 if bought in quantities of 4 or more. That includes admission to their water park, Hurricane Harbor.
A WDW Premium Annual Pass is $754.
Please, compare apples-to-apples.
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Lucky
Well-Known Member
Has that ever worked before?
Prices (even adjusting for inflation) are higher every year but so are stories about bad behavior in the parks.
kap91
Well-Known Member
Apples to Apples: Went to a six Flags for the first time in my life this past fall. I was largely horrified. Plenty of good large coasters (Very, very good coasters) surround by advertisements upon advertisements for all sorts of completely random products painted on every surface you could see. 1 ride that at all resembled a dark ride which while cute is substandard even when compared to Dollywood or Knotts. 2+ hour waits for everything (this with a parking lot that barely had any cars in it), an operations team that clearly didn't care about said lines and only ran the bare minimum amount of trains on those coasters. Absolutely terrible food selections (You're choice of disgusting looking pizza, burgers, chicken tenders, or a few other chain restaurant options) at prices higher than that of Disney or Universal - constant announcements over the PA of additional things I could buy, no souvenirs worth buying - there was a freaking store in the middle of the park that was a Dollar General in everything but name (didn't even have a postcard I could buy). Oh and parking was $20 - and seemingly no one actually operates it - the money going purely to the parks' bottom line. The only reason I would go back is if I needed my adrenaline fix because the coasters are good. How they could even begin to consider themselves to provide more than half the value than Disney, Universal or even SeaWorld parks completely boggles my mind. The park is closed nearly half the year. And with the amount of 3rd party advertising in the park - I can't see why they even need to charge an admission fee at all.
Doing an apples to apples comparison makes the rates charged by the Orlando parks seem to be an absolute steal rather than just comparable with similar entertainment.
ParentsOf4
Well-Known Member
You are completely free to have your opinion.
For a family that only can afford four $59.99 Season Passes at Six Flags, it's the best they can do.
For a family that can afford a $10,000 vacation at WDW, even better.
Right now, WDW's problem is that there are a lot of families that cannot afford to pay $700/night for a hotel room at the Grand Floridian. Heck, they cannot afford to pay $150/night at a WDW "Value" Resort. WDW hotel occupancy rates have been declining for years.
As Disney increases prices at rates faster than consumers' abilities to pay them, Disney is going to have an increasingly difficult time filling hotel rooms and eventually theme parks.
Perhaps when a one-day ticket at WDW is $1000 you might feel differently.
Today at $99, many families are already feeling differently.
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Buried20KLeague
Well-Known Member
rob0519
Well-Known Member
Everyone is saying "Disney can raise prices all they want, there will still be rubes willing to pay… It won't matter if you vote with your wallet and take your vaca dollars to Universal instead, because someone else will happily take your place…"
Reeeeally? I'm surprised nobody has talked about "bad word of mouth" yet. That is something ANY company should be afraid of. All it takes is one family to come back home from their WDW trip and spew all of the ridiculous things they had to put up with to their friends, family, coworkers…
"It was insanely expensive! Even the food was horribly overpriced and it was GARBAGE! The rides were okay but seemed like they'e been sitting there for decades; some parks only had, like, five rides! The lines were too long… Hour and a Half line to meet a princess character!? And this magic band nonsense! We just wanted to go on some rides, not wait in lines to PLAN our day!"
I'm assuming this has been happening for years with dissatisfied customers returning from their (probably 1st,2nd, or 3rd) WDW visit and letting everyone in their lives know it wasn't worth it. And now that there's this Magic Band crud ruining people's vacations since december of last year, I'm sure that has only amplified bad word of mouth.
Meanwhile at Universal…
People on this forum have been saying WDW is insanely, expensive, food is overpriced and garbage, rides are just ok, etc..etc..etc.. for years. If they're taking the time to type it here, I'm sure they are telling their friends as well. What has the result been? No decline in attendance and increased prices. There are always new people willing to take our places. The ONLY bad word of mouth campaign that ever achieved any type of change at wdw was the old GAC program. The only reason that worked is the people that were paying all those outrageous prices were upset that someone (including those that needed the assistance) got on a ride 90 seconds before they did.
I hope you're right about the magic band and fastpass+ being the final word of mouth straws to break WDWs arrogance, but I hightly doubt it.