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WDW Ticket Prices
- Thread starter FutureCEO
- Start date
ford91exploder
Resident Curmudgeon
They were undervalued in the 80's not NOW, And Eisner did a series of price increases which raised the price by over 50% - But the ticket price increase also went to fund NEW things for both WDW and DL.
Clamman73
Well-Known Member
RSoxNo1
Well-Known Member
Another very true statement. The true Disney apologist will say that the ticket increases lead to increased content/attractions. Some observations from my recent trip:
- The My Disney Experience app is still incredibly flawed, I'll post an anecdote below.
- My mother was more impressed by the Frozen show than Mine Train. She enjoyed Mine Train, but thought the Frozen show resulted in so many happy little girls that it was more of a crowd pleaser.
- Outside of New Fantasyland, not much has changed in 9 years.
I waited 10 minutes before I got to a cast member with an iPad. I told him to get me the next available Little Mermaid reservation for the 9 of us. He said, no problem and made the reservation. I looked and it did not include my parents. I pointed this out to him and he said, "oh, we've never seen this before". I found that hard to believe, they've never had a situation where people had reservations that they didn't use, those have since expired and the guest wants to get new ones. He called over a guest relations cast member (the guys in the horse jockey outfits) who recognized the issue and made it a point to fix it. When I left he told me that we were all good for The Little Mermaid at 7:40 and for our troubles we would also all get 2 "anytime" Fastpasses that could be used for anything in the parks except parades or fireworks. This included Mine Train and Anna and Elsa. He also made it a point to say that it wasn't going to look normal on the app.
Ironically, this was one of the few times that the app was working well on our trip and we were able to figure out what exactly was done after the fact. But first we struggled to make the end time of the Little Mermaid Fastpass to the extent that I was worried we would burn one of the anytime Fastpasses. The CMs there were accommodating and let us in, and gave us a slip of paper that would have allowed all 9 of us to get on anything as well. We wound up not using it, but the option was there.
All told, we benefited tremendously from the shortcomings of My Disney Experience and Fastpass+. These things never would have been issues under the old system.
Now to translate what they actually did:
- The 7 of us that went to Epcot in the morning were given Fastpass+ reservations for Little Mermaid from 7:40-8:40
- My parents who did not go to Epcot in the morning were given Fastpass+ reservations for any attraction from 7:30-Park Close
- All 9 of us were given three (not the two mentioned by the cast member) Fastpass+ reservations for any attraction from 5:30-Park Close
Another sidebar to this is that under my ID on My Disney Experience, I created several bogus accounts. I did this to fill out tables for dining reservations so that people that do have IDs can see it on their plans. The bogus names: Bob Iger, Jay Rasulo, Tom Staggs and Pope Francis. When the CM initially tried to give us all Mermaid Fastpasses, I mentioned that my parents were under my ID, he then proceeded to give Fastpasses to all people under me, including those 4, none of which have passes. They also needed to know the e-mail addresses of the other MDE ID's in my group in order to complete the entire process.
NearTheEars
Well-Known Member
Just for clarification, what are the ticket prices from the early part of the graph based on? Is it the cost of the ticket booklet they used to use?
NearTheEars
Well-Known Member
Speaking of scalping. How do those shady booths on 192 stay open selling discount tickets in the era of Magicbands.
SnarkyMonkey
Well-Known Member
Sorry...yes...it was someone else I was responding to...which makes your response to me make even less sense.
I didn't say that people couldn't critique Disney. My point was the people who are complaining all the time and threaten to not return are either making idle threats or are so few that it has very little to no impact on the bottom line. I didn't say people shouldn't complain when they perceive something to be wrong.
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ParentsOf4
Well-Known Member
For everyone's reference, prior to the opening of Epcot, WDW sold theme park admission and attractions separately. There were some 'free' experiences included in the price of admission but most rides required separate tickets.
In 1971, adult admission was $3.50 while an 11 Adventure booklet cost $5.75.
For each year prior to the opening of Epcot, I included the price of admission and Disney's largest available Adventure booklet in the calculation. Thus, for 1971, I used a price of $9.25 ($3.50 + $5.75) for a 1-day ticket.
Adjusted for changes to Median Household Income, that 1-day ticket would cost the equivalent of $53.59 in 2013.
For the typical working-class family of 1971, it's important to recognize that the equivalent of $53.59 per person for a family of 4 was not cheap. However, it was much less than $99 (plus tax) per person today. (Disney's early prices included tax.)
Relative to Median Household Income, WDW prices bottomed out in 1982 and 1983 after the opening of Epcot. Disney eliminated the separate admission and ride tickets, changing the ticket to be all-inclusive.
I recall newspapers (remember those
) reporting that some people were very upset because they were being 'forced' to pay for attractions.Back then, I guess there were a lot of people who liked to go to the Magic Kingdom and then not ride any attractions.
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Mike S
Well-Known Member
It must be because of when I was born, but even if it was 1971 I can't imagine $9.25 not being viewed as incredibly cheapFor everyone's reference, prior to the opening of Epcot, WDW sold theme park admission and attractions separately. There were some 'free' experiences included in the price of admission but most rides required separate tickets.
In 1971, adult admission was $3.50 while an 11 Adventure booklet cost $5.75.
For each year prior to the opening of Epcot, I included the price of admission and Disney's largest available Adventure booklet in the calculation. Thus, for 1971, I used a price of $9.25 ($3.50 + $5.75) for a 1-day ticket.
Adjusted for changes to Median Household Income, that 1-day ticket would cost the equivalent of $53.59 in 2013.
For the typical working-class family of 1971, it's important to recognize that the equivalent of $53.59 per person for a family of 4 was not cheap. However, it was much less than $99 per person today.
Relative to Median Household Income, WDW prices bottomed out in 1982 and 1983 after the opening of Epcot. Disney eliminated the separate admission and ride tickets, changing the ticket to be all-inclusive.
I recall newspapers (remember those
Back then, I guess there were a lot of people who liked to go to the Magic Kingdom and then not ride any attractions.
Gabe1
Ivory Tower Squabble EST 2011. WINDMILL SURVIVOR
It must be because of when I was born, but even if it was 1971 I can't imagine $9.25 not being viewed as incredibly cheap
I doubt that.
Cost Of Living 1971
How Much things cost in 1971
Yearly Inflation Rate USA 4.3%
Yearly Inflation Rate UK 8.6%
Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 890
Average Cost of new house $25,250.00
Average Income per year $10,600.00
Average Monthly Rent $150.00
Cost of a gallon of Gas 40 cents
Datsun 1200 Sports Coupe $1,866.00
United States postage Stamp 8 cents
Ladies 2 piece knit suites $9.98
Movie Ticket $1.50
Below are some Prices for UK guides in Pounds Sterling
Average House Price 5,632
Gallon of Petrol 0.33
A few More Examples
Dodge Charger $3,579
Fresh Turkey Lb 43 cents
Fresh Strawberries Lb 29 cents
Idaho Potatoes 10 Lbs 98 cents
Jiffy Peanut Butter 59 cents
Tape Cassette Recorder $29.88
2 Quart Preasure Cooker $7.77
Side By Side Fridge $704.95
Electrical Heater Fireplace $59.88
Malibu Barbie $1.94
Etch-A-Sketch $2.83
Rock Em Sock Em Robots $8.99
Ladies Beret and Scarf Set $6.00
3 Bedroom House Chicago $16,500
networkpro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
For everyone's reference, prior to the opening of Epcot, WDW sold theme park admission and attractions separately. There were some 'free' experiences included in the price of admission but most rides required separate tickets.
In 1971, adult admission was $3.50 while an 11 Adventure booklet cost $5.75.
Adjusted for changes to Median Household Income, that 1-day ticket would cost the equivalent of $53.59 in 2013.
Back then, I guess there were a lot of people who liked to go to the Magic Kingdom and then not ride any attractions.
Updated for 2014 which is the latest figures available for the consumer price index the numbers are not much different.
$3.50 in 1971 by the CPI would be 20.46 in 2014 dollars
$5.75 50 in 1971 by the CPI would be 33.61 in 2014 dollars
for a total of $54.07 per day equivalent.
Now there are 32 attractions just in Magic Kingdom compared to the 15 on opening day. So for a little less than double the price, you've got double the attractions.
Opening Day Attractions (October 1, 1971)
Country Bear Jamboree
Dapper Dans
Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Frontierland Shootin' Arcade
Jungle Cruise
Mad Tea Party
Peter Pan's Flight
Prince Charming Regal Carrousel
Swiss Family Treehouse
The Hall of Presidents
The Haunted Mansion
Tomorrowland Speedway
Walt Disney World Railroad Main Street U.S.A. Station
Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room
it's a small world
2014 attractions
Astro Orbiter
Barnstormer featuring Goofy as the Great Goofini
Big Thunder Mountain
Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin
Carousel of Progress
Country Bear Jamboree
Dream Along with Mickey
Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Enchanted Tales with Belle
Enchanted Tiki Room
Hall of Presidents
The Haunted Mansion
it's a small world
Jungle Cruise
Liberty Square Riverboat
Mad Tea Party
The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Mickey's Philharmagic
Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor
Peter Pan's Flight
Pirates of the Caribbean
Prince Charming Regal Carrousel
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Space Mountain
Splash Mountain
Stitch's Great Escape!
Swiss Family Treehouse
Tom Sawyer Island
Tomorrowland Speedway
Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover
Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid
NearTheEars
Well-Known Member
For everyone's reference, prior to the opening of Epcot, WDW sold theme park admission and attractions separately. There were some 'free' experiences included in the price of admission but most rides required separate tickets.
In 1971, adult admission was $3.50 while an 11 Adventure booklet cost $5.75.
For each year prior to the opening of Epcot, I included the price of admission and Disney's largest available Adventure booklet in the calculation. Thus, for 1971, I used a price of $9.25 ($3.50 + $5.75) for a 1-day ticket.
Adjusted for changes to Median Household Income, that 1-day ticket would cost the equivalent of $53.59 in 2013.
For the typical working-class family of 1971, it's important to recognize that the equivalent of $53.59 per person for a family of 4 was not cheap. However, it was much less than $99 (plus tax) per person today. (Disney's early prices included tax.)
Relative to Median Household Income, WDW prices bottomed out in 1982 and 1983 after the opening of Epcot. Disney eliminated the separate admission and ride tickets, changing the ticket to be all-inclusive.
I recall newspapers (remember those
Back then, I guess there were a lot of people who liked to go to the Magic Kingdom and then not ride any attractions.
Thank you! Seems like you have a good system for it. (Of course you do, duh!)
ParentsOf4
Well-Known Member
Whether a movie theater has 2 screens or 20 screens, there are only so many movies I can see in a day.
The Magic Kingdom has become a multiday park, meaning a multiday ticket is needed. Most Guests have to visit the Magic Kingdom more than once to experience all of its attractions.
Since the opening of Splash Mountain in 1992, the number of attractions at the Magic Kingdom has remained fairly constant. That hasn't stopped Disney from tripling the price of a 1-day ticket since then.
Eisner's price increases were understandable because content was added. Up through 1998, WDW investment levels were huge. This simply has not been the case in the 21st Century.
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networkpro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
There are other factors in play other than just simple numerical comparisons. Consider the difference in M0 (aka Money Supply) between 1971 and today. Thanks to "quantitative easement" we are highly leveraged. Uncle Sam keeps printing money that necessarily decreases its value.
http://www.tradingeconomics.com/cha...g?s=unitedstamonsupm0&d1=19710101&d2=20151231
http://www.tradingeconomics.com/cha...g?s=unitedstamonsupm0&d1=19710101&d2=20151231
Mike S
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the list, gives me a pretty good idea of what things cost back then.
Lucky
Well-Known Member
That's just a different way of talking about inflation, which has already been covered thoroughly.
networkpro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
That's just a different way of talking about inflation, which has already been covered thoroughly.
Nope CPI is used to calculate inflation based on reference years (currently 1982-1984 which is considered 100) based on the AVERAGE urban cost of a couple hundred consumer goods.
CPI- "a measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services."
Inflation- "the overall general upward price movement of goods and services in an economy."
Its making the assumption that all goods are equal and react to the all market conditions in the same manner.
Lucky
Well-Known Member
networkpro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
CPI is used to CALCULATE inflation, they are not interchangeable