I agree with many of the responses to this post in that many on this forum have the same excuse as you. Of the three big theme parks here in Orlando, Disney, Universal & Sea World, Disney appeals to us more because of the Stories that the park is themed after. Sea World would be our next in line but the problem with Sea World is that most of the attractions are scheduled and early in the day, in which being locals, we prefer to visit the parks late in the day into the evening, therefore we miss most of what we want to see. It just doesn't work with our lifestyle. As for Universal, we have no strong interest in the characters and the stories behind the attractions, plus, many of the rides are thrill rides and we, unfortunately, can't stomach those types of rides anymore as we grow older. We prefer Disney because we like the Stories, especially the Classics and we also like the theming…at least most of it. True, DHS theming has fallen apart and Epcot, we're not sure there is a theme anymore, but we rarely visit those parks because of that. We love AK but it currently is more of a day park, which is a problem for us as mentioned above, and we don't see Avatar as an improvement…it just doesn't fit in our opinion. MK offers much of what we look for in a park for both theming and attractions, but they seem to be adding more thrill rides and meet and greets which is not our cup of tea.
As for your second question, how is the consumer so resilient? Well, we will probably get blasted for this but there was a coincidence that occurred at about the same time Iger became CEO that we feel is the main reason Disney's attendance has gone through the roof and there are plenty of articles that would support it. We certainly don’t feel it is based on what Iger has done, he has simply lucked out. Iger took over as CEO in 2005 and Facebook was founded in 2004. As Facebook took off, so did the postings of people having a great time at Disney. Most people base their success on achieving what others have, whether they can afford it or not. I would think that most, if not all, posts put on Facebook or any other social media during a trip to Disney, are those where the family is having a fantastic time. Very few, if any are showing the meltdowns, arguments, ride breakdowns, closings of attractions, long lines at Guest Relations, in ability to get into the room, etc…that we often see while at the parks ourselves. It has always fascinated us how people will walk by live entertainment, for example, take a quick photo and move on. I'm sure that was posted as seeing this group perform but in reality, it was a simple quick snap shot while in passing. When tons of these photos are viewed by hundreds of friends and families, they become envious and find themselves feeling they need to do the same. This certainly isn't going to apply to everybody, but I don't see how it wouldn't be a huge factor in the attendance increase at the parks.
Below is a small excerpt out of an article on ABC News in which to us, the main issue here is "keeping up with the Joneses" which has always been in existence but now it comes through the form of social media:
It all leads to what experts call financial insecurity. BabyCenter'sCost of Raising a Child Report found 60 percent of moms feel pressure to appear well off on social media as well as envy or embarrassment about their own financial situation.
Nicole Perez, mom of a 6-year-old tot, said the constant influx of material possessions on social media "makes you feel as if you are a failure as a mother. It's heartbreaking when your child says 'mom, when you get enough money can I get that toy?'" Perez said that family trips to Disney are all over her Facebook news feed, something that's just not possible in her current financial situation.
She's not alone. Colleen, a mom of two who preferred to use her first name only, admitted to "a habit of checking out the material 'clues' in the backgrounds of people's Facebook photos: kitchen cabinets or expensive furniture. I suppose it sort of creates a 'keeping up with the Joneses' feeling, and I'm sure I'm projecting all sorts of comparisons that might not even be there."
Gelman said beyond the emotional stress these feeling can cause, there are very real financial concerns. "There's a lot of maxing out of credit cards and buying things you can't afford. Which is really unfortunate just so you can go online and say 'look what I've done for my kids."
It seems this article is a little focused on single mothers but we feel it applies across the board. This probably doesn't apply to most of those on this forum but it might help explain the huge attendance increase of the first timers or infrequent guests.
