21stamps
Well-Known Member
I'm putting my money on the side of- They won't. They aren't idiots.
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News WDW Resorts to add fees for parking
- Thread starter The Visionary Soul
- Start date
Andrew C
You know what's funny?
sometimes they can be...
21stamps
Well-Known Member
But in this manner? Seriously. Something this huge? This wouldn't be a "bad decision". This would be a colossal mistake, with huge repercussions.
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space42
Well-Known Member
Cabanas in tomorrowland say you're wrong.
Andrew C
You know what's funny?
Maybe they think they can pull it off with little push back? We will find out. I have no idea what their plan is. I just think it would be a risky and silly move.
flynnibus
Premium Member
Yup.. the mass public would not get hooked by a headline pitching "Disney adding fees that many others already charge"
The mass public is not scholarly enough to get hooked into a deep dive around the shift in Disney's business practice and the risk it presents to the long term of the business.
Joe Q Public is already conditioned to resort fees and parking fees.. a news story about someone charging them is a non-starter.
contrariwise
Well-Known Member
I wish I could have liked this a hundred times. I don't know what the problem is. Sometimes if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it's a duck.
RobbinsDad
Well-Known Member
Same.
I've gone back and forth with it. The parking fee kicker has to be your posture toward Disney transportation. I'm personally a user - I don't enjoy driving or parking at Disney parks and resorts, I'd much rather use public transportation if possible. But if you don't care for their transportation, then this is unacceptable. One of the major perks of staying in a resort is free parking at parks and other resorts. I have used my own vehicle to get to other places in the resort before, usually for tight ADRs and such. Park parking is like $20 right? And are water parks still free? Basically staying on resort adds $10 minimum to your daily parking. So basically, if you don't use the buses, boats, or monorails, you can stay at an off-site hotel/house/condo with free parking, and the cost to park at the theme park is only $20, then what's the incentive for staying on-resort? Round-trip gasoline isn't going to make the $10 difference.
Regardless of this, the resort fees are what I think is the most ridiculous. The one thing about a Disney-packaged vacation that you could rely on is that while it's generally more expensive than piece-mealing an Orlando vacation, the price you see is the price you pay - tickets, hotel, DP, whatever. Almost gave it an all-inclusive feel. That seems to be going away, and it's just another in a long line of recent wrong-way-rubs for me.
flynnibus
Premium Member
You mean like raising parking prices 33% in less than 1.5 yrs?
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/tourism/os-theme-park-parking-20151110-story.html
Parking that is now almost double what it was in less than 7 years?
How much have we heard on that? Did the public get roused and march on Disney? Nope.. People have been conditioned to grit their teeth and just pay these kinds of fees.. even if they don't like them. Customers feel helpless to counter.
It's the kind of story that would run.. get circulated for a week.. and then go away.
US Gov can control how businesses advertise.. but they can't stop these kinds of fees at local hotels.
This resort fee isn't intended to garner bad press. It's intended to garner more money. Bad press doesn't stop businesses from gouging the consumer. Case in point: car dealers who continue to charge "document fees" despite the internet and TV news exposure... and don't get me started about "Fabric Protection"...
Andrew C
You know what's funny?
we will see...
coasterphil
Well-Known Member
Guys, Disney believes they're in a strong enough position that they can push through these types of fees without a major effect to business. Their biggest comparison market (Vegas) has already shown them how this works out. Initial press backlash and long term upset in certain circles online, but record visitation continues as the average guest doesn't really care and just deals with it. Vegas didn't add any new value for those things either, they provided the same BS explanations that I'm sure Disney will use.
With every property/market that implements these changes without much upset, the urge to implement the fees will be stronger. WDW is basically the only holdout at this point, and while many (including me) would argue that Disney owes their entire success to being a market leader and not being like any other hospitality company, their current management clearly feels that doesn't need to be the case anymore. We're huge and families are always going to want to come, so give me more revenue ASAP. That seems to be the new mindset.
With every property/market that implements these changes without much upset, the urge to implement the fees will be stronger. WDW is basically the only holdout at this point, and while many (including me) would argue that Disney owes their entire success to being a market leader and not being like any other hospitality company, their current management clearly feels that doesn't need to be the case anymore. We're huge and families are always going to want to come, so give me more revenue ASAP. That seems to be the new mindset.
contrariwise
Well-Known Member
Disney execs are not idiots. But they've been governed by a different mindset lately. The focus has shifted from innovation and customer service to "how can we separate people from MORE of their money with as little effort as possible." These fees, if they happen, are squarely in line with that mindset.
This is a money grab, plain and simple. If they implement it, it will be because THEY CAN. And they fully believe they'll get away with it. People in the know will complain, but most won't. TPTB believe their brand will not suffer for this. They've gotten away with a lot lately. They're going to push the money grabs until there's a compelling reason not to.
They've already pushed me too far. Some people are willing to give them more rope.
SorcererMC
Well-Known Member
The FTC can; they haven't yet, but there seems to be increasing pressure in the past 6 months or so. I have no idea where the new leadership stands on this issue, but I can't imagine that Disney would implement a resort fee right now without knowing that first.
rael ramone
Well-Known Member
Senator (then Representative) Markey and the Mouse Arrest Bands... (and that wasn't just a mere 'complaint', it was an Official Congressional Inquiry).
Senator (and then Presidential Candidate) Sanders & CM pay/CEO greed (even said 'some live in their cars' IIRC)...
$DIS is a potential target for a politician wanting to make waves, whether deserved or not...
jt04
Well-Known Member
I believe this has security implications and wage implications. It isn't simply a money grab for the sake of money.
That said, I would like to see and expect AP passholders and DVC owners to have a reasonable option here using nextgen tech.
lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
Markey believes that roller coasters cause brain damage. He doesn't like the amusement industry and has repeatedly tried to go after it.
21stamps
Well-Known Member
Omg I didn't even catch that. I'm going to edit.lolYes. Even there.
Maybe. I think they know it would be too risky and too silly. We'll see.
I don't fault them for any upcharge events or even the cabanas in Tomorrowland. Those offerings benefit some people. I would never rent one of those cabanas, but I understand how it could be attractive to someone else- as long as it is a better structure than a tent.
I won't ever fault a business for trying to up their profit margins.
The resort fee is different.
Here's an example how I make my decisions at work- we have a meeting, we discuss increasing revenue. Someone says "that's included now, yes?" "Yes, it is. So what can we add to create value, even perceived value, so we can justify/sell it to our clientele." Then we go from there. You look at the proposal from all sides.
Now, I'm just a lowly woman working for a company that is no where near the size of Disney. We implement things that sometimes are a mistake, and we retract them. I think every business does this. We never purposely implement something that we know would create more backlash than any gain would be worth. Disney has a national audience. Resort fees have a national audience, it's a hot topic. I can't believe any decision maker there is not aware of this.
Exactly.