Trouble in paradise officially?

FutureCEO

Well-Known Member
Original Poster

GimpYancIent

Well-Known Member
Granted polling a few people is not the same as polling everyone and we've all see the crowds and the people who buy into everything.

Simply put, don't need a poll, It Ain't Cheap! It's not news that Disney has priced itself out of some family budgets.
 

LaughingGravy

Well-Known Member
Journalism is sorely lacking these days. It's to the point of common typos in the headlines you never used to see.

Just taking at face value"Those Making under $75K / year"...does that mean households with 2 or more people?
The survey also asked about this year. It's no secret there are things down/lacking/cutback, but doesn't seem to account for any of those things as reasons. "Dangers of Covid" is different than a lack of value for the price due to things being discontinued due to Covid as an excuse, LOL.
Plus, we are into June. Not much of the year left. Most Disney vacations we ever took were more than 6 months out, closer to a year.
If someone asks me if I plan on taking a Disney vacation within a year from now, that's a different question than "this year".
 

Mr. Moderate

Well-Known Member
Disney long ago has removed itself from a large number of family budgets and it's only getting worse. My family started our Disney parks journey 20 years ago and we were hooked from our very first trip and came avid fans and DVC members. A couple years ago with all the changes and steep increases, we reluctantly sold the DVC and scaled back our trips. This upcoming 50th anniversary trip that I promised the family we would take in October, was planned for well over two years in advance and making monthly payments. I'm exhausted at the cost, cutbacks, etc, and it has killed so much of the fun and joy I used to feel when planning and going on a WDW trip. I enjoy this forum and others, seeing construction progress being made and talking about the parks, but I've reach the point myself that it's just too expensive for what you get. I feel bad for the young families just starting out and getting hooked like we were in going to the parks and not being able to swing it. In all honesty, I shouldn't have went as much as I did and ignoring all the warning signs over the years. When I think about the money I spent in DVC and AP's for the family over the years, I just wince. Those memories weren't cheap.
 

DisneyNittany

Well-Known Member
DW and I were just discussing the past weekend if we should schedule an adults-only trip in late Jan/early Feb, but after pricing things out, but we've decided to probably just wait until our newborn daughter is almost 3-years old (if they still allow them in for free at that point).

Her and I love to travel, and since 2015 WDW has always been a yearly staple (if not multiple times per year), but it is becoming too expensive for what they now offer. Could we afford it? Yes, but it's not worth it when there are so many other destinations and options out there. We did WDW a certain way, and I'm certain if we went now we'd just feel like we were being robbed. Hell, we could easily get down to the Caribbean and stay at Sandals for the same time frame, but for less money and a much more relaxing experience.

Definitely will keep an eye on it. This could just be the huge storm from everyone being cooped up and willing to hand over their money like it's Monopoly currency. Hopefully that's the case and the consumer soon realizes they’re being sold some snake oil, but asking the American public to not act like sheep is a tall task.

Oh well. We'll get back there within the next three years I suppose. In the meantime, I'll find an overwater bungalow in the actual South Pacific for half the cost of staying at the Poly. If we get the Disney itch, I've been wanting to get back to SoCal anyway. Wouldn't mind some Tokyo street food either.
 
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LaughingGravy

Well-Known Member
Disney long ago has removed itself from a large number of family budgets and it's only getting worse. My family started our Disney parks journey 20 years ago and we were hooked from our very first trip and came avid fans and DVC members. A couple years ago with all the changes and steep increases, we reluctantly sold the DVC and scaled back our trips. This upcoming 50th anniversary trip that I promised the family we would take in October, was planned for well over two years in advance and making monthly payments. I'm exhausted at the cost, cutbacks, etc, and it has killed so much of the fun and joy I used to feel when planning and going on a WDW trip. I enjoy this forum and others, seeing construction progress being made and talking about the parks, but I've reach the point myself that it's just too expensive for what you get. I feel bad for the young families just starting out and getting hooked like we were in going to the parks and not being able to swing it. In all honesty, I shouldn't have went as much as I did and ignoring all the warning signs over the years. When I think about the money I spent in DVC and AP's for the family over the years, I just wince. Those memories weren't cheap.
Make your next family trip to Disneyland. It's worth the money.
 

uncle jimmy

Premium Member
I recently did a survey for Walt Disney World Resorts online and I noticed when it came to answering the household income they have more choices in ranges and increased the top range.
$599,999 or $799,999 and up, I believe was the max they gave you as a choice.
 

Parker in NYC

Well-Known Member
Yes, that's why people with lower salaries are maxing out their credit to visit. I speak from experience (for back in the old days when I lived above my means). Disney markets to everyone. And there are more people in lower income brackets than there are in higher ones. The people buy Disney movies and their kids want to visit. And many parents make poor decisions.

The only thing that will stop people from going to Disney for even a brief period is a complete economic crash or terrorist attack. And even the latter probably won't mean anything these days, depending on where it happens.
 

Sirwalterraleigh

Premium Member
is it me or this message board getting as bad as youtube with its titles :)
Yes...

doesn’t change this: $75,000 is below the comfortable income threshold for an on-site Disney trip. $500+ a day for tickets is pushing it no matter where you stay.

quick serve food would run you $150 without breaking a sweat...

yep...I changed my mind...the article is pretty much dead on.

So...when are fireworks coming back again??
 

Sirwalterraleigh

Premium Member
Yes, that's why people with lower salaries are maxing out their credit to visit. I speak from experience (for back in the old days when I lived above my means). Disney markets to everyone. And there are more people in lower income brackets than there are in higher ones. The people buy Disney movies and their kids want to visit. And many parents make poor decisions.

The only thing that will stop people from going to Disney for even a brief period is a complete economic crash or terrorist attack. And even the latter probably won't mean anything these days, depending on where it happens.

id argue that if they’re running broadcast tv ads...which they have done pretty heavily this year...they are marketing specifically to UNDER their income targets
 
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GimpYancIent

Well-Known Member
Yes...

doesn’t change this: $75,000 is below the comfortable income threshold for an on-site Disney trip. $500+ a day for tickets is pushing it no matter where you stay.

quick serve food would run you $150 without breaking a sweat...

yep...I changed my mind...the article is pretty much dead on.

So...when are fireworks coming back again??
I don't know about this arbitrary $75,000 threshold but getting all the pyro back, stage shows, interactive meet and greets, parades plus cleaning up from the construction site ambiance would definitely add value to being there. It's all about feeling the experience was worth the expense as to whether a return is in the future.
 

ppete1975

Well-Known Member
Ive said for years that unless youre in state disney isnt meant to be a yearly trip (though this message board seems to disagree with all you lucky people going often) Its at this point an every 3-5 years park, not just for cost but there are so many other places to see and do. Do disney the right way every few years then enjoy the rest of the world the other years. It will make disney much more special, and they probably wont have added much in that time anyway.
 

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
While the article was not a model of clarity or great writing, the overall theme -- that Disney is now too expensive for the average family, and that Disney has overestimated the interest of those in higher-income brackets -- jibes perfectly with my own observations.

I was reared, and still reside, in a lower-middle-class community where the average household income is about $65,000 per year, and median household income is only $42,000. WDW trips are something a family around here scrimps and saves for, sometimes for years, but which they also tend to choose again and again. We're 1,200 miles from Orlando, yet WDW is unquestionably the most popular out-of-state destination for local families. They'll go there 10 times without ever thinking of going somewhere else, because once they know they like it, they don't want to take a chance on an unknown quantity, especially when vacation time and dollars are so dear.

On the other hand, I used to work at two renowned, multi-national law firms, where my coworkers and "work friends" were typically making $100K-$1M per year (by themselves, without even adding in a spouse's income). They might take the kids to Disney once or twice while they were small, and stay at the Grand Floridian and spring for private tour guides because they want to opt for "the best" any vacation venue can provide -- but most of them came back complaining about how chintzy and cheesy it all was, and expressing relief that they were done with this particular rite of passage. They didn't make WDW a regular, repeat trip: why would they, when they could and did take regular vacations to exclusive, world-class resorts across the country, in the Caribbean, and overseas? World Showcase can't possibly impress you, when the world is already your playground. If Disney really thinks it's posh enough to compete with the kinds of vacations most high-income folks actually take, it is -- to quote one of those million-dollar-lawyers with whom I used to work -- "drunk on its own beer."

I realize these experiences are anecdotal, but I think they're representative of the larger issue the OP's linked article was addressing. To present an unnecessarily mixed analogy that for whatever reason I feel compelled to make, Disney is out there hunting a few white whales, while ignoring the billions of little tuna who are bumping against the side of the boat, wishing they could more comfortably afford to be caught.
 
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ppete1975

Well-Known Member
Biggest issues with the article is people said they werent going to go this year... (less value for the dollar, covid fears, etc) not that they would never go. And to put any price point on a group is dumb especially in a poll that prob reached across the US. In Nebraska, kansas oklahoma texas 75000 a year is totally different than lets say california making 75k. Just living expenses alone is totally different let alone different states and taxes.
 

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