WSJ: Even Disney Is Worried About The High Cost Of A Disney Vacation (gift link)

[lentesta]

(Not to mention the people watching by the pool was hysterical!)

I would read this thread.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

As far as the rest of your post goes, I do agree that's Disney is now targetting childless adults. I'm not so sure that's sustainable. While those people will visit Disney, I don't think many are the repeat visitors they rely on, like families and DVC were.

I think they have to target childless adults because it’s a fast growing segment, in the last 50 years US adults living without children has increased from 52% to 71%, a lot of that is empty nesters but an increasingly large portion is also young people choosing not to have kids, it’s also a segment far more likely to have excess disposable income.

I also question the long term affects of the “nostalgia” factor, I grew up in a lower middle class family who never visited the parks as kids, we couldn’t afford it, but we did develop a huge love of Disney and a strong nostalgia factor from growing up watching Uncle Walt on TV, growing up during the Disney afternoon generation, and growing up during the Disney movie renaissance, with the endless entertainment options now it feels like Disney has lost a lot of the TV and movie “nostalgia” influence it had when we were kids, that leaves the parks as the primary driver of nostalgia now.

 

[Jrb1979]

I think they have to target childless adults because it’s a fast growing segment, in the last 50 years US adults living without children has increased from 52% to 71%, a lot of that is empty nesters but an increasingly large portion is also young people choosing not to have kids, it’s also a segment far more likely to have excess disposable income.

I also question the long term affects of the “nostalgia” factor, I grew up in a lower middle class family who never visited the parks as kids, we couldn’t afford it, but we did develop a huge love of Disney and a strong nostalgia factor from growing up watching Uncle Walt on TV, growing up during the Disney afternoon generation, and growing up during the Disney movie renaissance, with the endless entertainment options now it feels like Disney has lost a lot of the TV and movie “nostalgia” influence it had when we were kids, that leaves the parks as the primary driver of nostalgia now.

I get all that and agree. My thoughts are those people aren't likely to be repeat visitors to Disney like families in the past were. Most are one and done especially with the cost. IMO most don't have the attachment to Disney like we did growing up.

I'm in the same camp as @flynnibus that they have broken the chain in terms of adults bringing their kids that then get hooked on Disney

 

[JoeCamel]

My stay at Amangiri was in early 2023, I was in a Mesa View suite and my nightly rate was about 60% of that. But if that's what they are now charging for 2026, more power to them. They've got an incredible product.

For those keeping score at home, a stay at Amangiri is all inclusive. The rates posted above include;

• 3 meals per day (at incredibly high Michelin-star quality) for 2 people per room at the hotels' restaurants or room service
• Round trip luxury transportation from the airport
• Daily excursions and staff-led activities in the surrounding desert
• Beverages and snacks refilled twice-daily and curated to your exact tastes in your suite's wet bar
• Twice daily housekeeping, daily wellness classes, extensive hotel offerings, general coddling and butt kissing, etc.

Someone who is more bored than I am can try pricing out a WDW vacation for two staying in a 1-Bedroom suite at the Poly for $1,400 per night, but then adding on 3 meals at high-end WDW restaurants per day, park tickets, a black Escalade to pick you up at MCO baggage claim, and the various Lightning Lane and App-based charges for a WDW (or DLR) vacation.

My hunch is it will get very close to Amangiri, but fall far short when it comes to CM service and offerings.

Alcohol NOT included

 

[MisterPenguin]

I think they have to target childless adults

Well, they do. But should do more so.

The parks wouldn't be open weekdays on school nights if it weren't for adults.

About 60% of Disney+ subscribers are homes without children. (Which is why they pivoted D+ from G-Rated library to full streaming service to all ages.)

Riviera's one-room studio DVC suite was especially made for adults sans kids.

But, yes, they should have ways to target more specifically to the "Disney adult" that keeps their parks open all year round and consume most of their content. Hopefully they can do that in a subtle and effective way that doesn't play cringe-worthily on the Disney adult meme/trope.

Right now the only Disney-adult advertising I can think of that they do is for newlyweds.

 

[Agent H]

I get all that and agree. My thoughts are those people aren't likely to be repeat visitors to Disney like families in the past were. Most are one and done especially with the cost. IMO most don't have the attachment to Disney like we did growing up.

I'm in the same camp as @flynnibus that they have broken the chain in terms of adults bringing their kids that then get hooked on Disney

The reality of the situation is that we won’t know for quite a while but I am inclined to lean more towards this is people overreacting

 

[flynnibus]

Here's a wild anecdotal thing. My youngest has been a few times to WDW (we usually need to be down there for a convention in the summer). The thing he wants most this summer when we go down? A hotel with a crazy pool. He could care less about the parks. All he talks about right now is going to Cedar Point this summer (mind you he's in Kindergarten).

Sure - but what everyone learns is, memories can be better than when they were first experienced. Your kid may not get excited about Nemo today... but at some point in his future he may look fondly back on that memory and remember something else. But you're also comparing a 5yr old... which is pretty much the lower bound of long term memories and more complex appreciation.

I hated going to every table service in the parks as a kid.. but I liked it later. I cried on 20k leagues the first time.. but later I came to love it for what it was.. this unique thing you didn't really see anywhere else.. even tho the strings were plain in sight everywhere.

I think of some of those memories from when I was younger. It's not riding Space Mountain or dumbo. It's the parades (especially at night), the fireworks, it's the character interactions, things like that (it still occurs, but I still remember NEEDING to stay out every night to watch the electric water parade). He just doesn't have any connection with the parks at all outside of "Oh that Guardians of the Galaxy ride is fun." I know I've been broken from my loyalty, but we still go, and it's interesting that it's not connecting at all with him at his age. Now, it could just be kids are weird and he will look back much differently later, but he definitely could care less about going to Disney this year.

Exactly that... as your kid gets old you will see more change in this as well. A kid's world has a very close horizon... they don't really need to think long term. But they are absorbing all the time.

 

[flynnibus]

Disney is not a luxury brand. Never was. Never will be. But it will price and market itself as one.

Luxury? No.

Premium.. and renowned.. Yes.

They didn't build a red roof inn for their first hotels.. they built one-off unique properties that were laden with RESORT amenities intended to keep guests entertained and fed over multiple day stays.

You didn't have personal conceirges - but you did have resort level accommodations and amenities.

The change is Disney stopped being a resort and evolved to just more and more theme park destinations with on-site housing.

 

[flynnibus]

If you were doing your homework and avidly consuming every morsel of every thread here then you would have seen it, no soup for you!

or just realize archive.is should be your goto to getting around any paywall site

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

In my experience Dual Income No Kids or the Gen Z crowd is quite finicky and abhors routines in ways that previous generations and families do. DVC, for example, is heavily marketed to multigenerational families and as a way to “pass on” the gift of vacations. How many Dual Income No Kids are signing up for a decades-long DVC lease?

If the company really has eschewed cultivating multigenerational families in favor of fickle Dual Income No Kids then good luck with that!

I haven’t heard the pitch in years…

But they used to push locked in costs and multigenerational benefits

But that was 20 years ago…I’d like to know how they do it now from someone who’s heard it post 2020?

And my suspicions are heavily colored by the fact it’s 400% of the price since I heard it. 100% increase every five years averaged out


…can’t put a price on magic, huh?

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Luxury? No.

Premium.. and renowned.. Yes.

They didn't build a red roof inn for their first hotels.. they built one-off unique properties that were laden with RESORT amenities intended to keep guests entertained and fed over multiple day stays.

You didn't have personal conceirges - but you did have resort level accommodations and amenities.

The change is Disney stopped being a resort and evolved to just more and more theme park destinations with on-site housing.

Then why have excuse makers run around saying “they’re luxury now” for ten years?

Is it because they were stupid from
The start?

(Rhetorical)

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Yes because heaven forbid someone have a mustache

Mustache? No…not a problem

The 20 year old look that has devolved into not bathing and wearing a sweatshirt 365 days a year?

Yeah…that isn’t what you want

 

[Agent H]

Mustache? No…not a problem

The 20 year old look that has devolved into not bathing and wearing a sweatshirt 365 days a year?

Yeah…that isn’t what you want

Okay boomer I have never seen anything like that in the parks

 

[flynnibus]

I've always taken the "people visit because of nostalgia thing" as a given as well. But the more I think about it, the more I wonder if this arose out of the stereotype that Disney is for kids, so if adults like it, that can only be the result of childhood nostalgia.

It's not just nostalgia - People adored the Disney product and what it represented in their life. People for instance just love the Haunted Mansion... and not just because they remember it as a child.. but they love the content itself 'now' too. Adults are not just reliving their childhood - they are immersing themselves in an atmosphere they appreciate and for many of those, seeded when they were much younger.

Point being, Disney hooked those adults long before. The type that would visit 3-5 times in a short period of time (1-2 years) are not just people looking for vacation - They were brand loyalists. That's why you would get the type of customers that 'would only ever goto Disney' and the type that 'could never think about going to Florida and NOT goto WDW...'

This is not normal 'hey, lets decide where to go this year for vacation' - These are people that were completely bought in, and usually endoctrinated their kids in the brand as well.

Obviously as those people age and become empty nesters, those addictions don't wane.. even if the amount of focus they put on the brand does as priorities shift. But then that's how you get the types that keep going to Disney long after their kids are grown. They are the type that would buy DVC.. and think about taking their grandkids yearly, etc.

But increasingly I think adults like going to Disney for its own sake, and it's seen more as a fun destination for young adults. It seems like Disney influencers with kids are actually the exception, not the norm, which would seem to indicate something about the audience consuming that content.

The people consuming the content are people that live vicariously through the vloggers experiences. Often even jealous that these folks can actually goto a theme park many times a month, or even a week... 'how cool that must be...' -- People get to see their fantasies through others.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think Disney is ever going to give up on families entirely. They must make bank from little ones going through their "princess phase", after all - the Bippity Boppity Boutique, the princess meals, the costumes, the merch. That's not changing anytime soon. But I do think that when it comes to disposable income, parents are typically going to be at a disadvantage when compared to childless people with a similar income. Not in every single case, but on average, parents probably have more motivation to visit Disney (you generally have way fewer options for vacations with children in tow), but less resources to do so.

Go out into the public and solicit if people think Disney is a place for adults without kids.. Or even better, tell people you are taking a Disney Cruise w/o kids. Most people will be confused why would you do that.

Disney is associated with kids and families. The 'lifers' are just an extension of that. Disney isn't wooing Vegas hopefuls with an argument of 'we have cleaner fun'.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Okay boomer I have never seen anything like that in the parks

Settle down, son…the dominant generation is not the boom now…

And I didn’t say you saw that…I’m saying the level of discipline has gone down each of the last 4 generations and Disney would be wise to opening not up the flood gate on that

 

[Agent H]

The people consuming the content are people that live vicariously through the vloggers experiences. Often even jealous that these folks can actually goto a theme park many times a month, or even a week... 'how cool that must be...' -- People get to see their fantasies through others.

I consume that kind of content all the time especially Molly formerly from all ears

 

[Agent H]

Settle down, son…the dominant generation is not the book now…

And I didn’t say you saw that…I’m saying the level of discipline has gone down each of the last 4 generations and Disney would be wise to opening up the flood gate on that

Wait I’m confused you think it’s a good thing to open up the floodgates now?

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

. Often even jealous that these folks can actually goto a theme park many times a month, or even a week... 'how cool that must be...' -- People get to see their fantasies through others.

Anyone jealous of toiling around Orlando and putting it online honestly has no wisdom

That’s not “living the dream”…it’s wasting time denying yourself everything else in life

Everything gets old. That’s the truth.

 

[SteamboatJoe]

Did I read that Disney is trying to spin that you can vacation there for under $3,500? If so, that is incredibly misleading and insulting.

I have to keep an elaborate spreadsheet to estimate the cost of a WDW trip and save accordingly. It's not perfect, but I ended up being within a couple hundred bucks for my 2023 trip so I would say it's fairly accurate. I priced this out a few months ago, so it has almost certainly increased since then.

# of People = 3 (2 adults, 1 child)
Economic Status = Middle Class
Traveling From = Midwest
Transportation = Driving over 2 days (4 total)
Resort = All-Star Movies
Dates = 9/30/25 - 10/6/25
Park Days = 5

TOTAL ESTIMATED VACATION COST = $6,638.36 (not including any gift shop souvenirs)

Breakdown...

• Resort/Ticket Package = $3,403.36
• In Park Expenses = $2,065
  • Meals = $1,080 ($20/meal/person)
  • Snacks = $360
  • Lightning Lane = $375
  • Memory Maker PhotoPass = $185
  • Magic Band = $65
• Travel Expenses = $1,170.00
  • Fuel = $498 ($2.50/gallon but probably more)
  • Parking = $150
  • Tolls = $12
  • Hotels While Traveling = $240 ($120/night, but probably more)
  • Travel Meals/Food = $270

Now of course there are places that money could be saved....

• $625 alone in Disney cash grabs but now we don't get any high quality pictures or ride photos, have to wait in insanely long lines, and are stuck doing everything by phone. So major decrease in experience quality and value and even with all those cuts, the overall budget is still over $6k.
• Meals and especially snacks could potentially be curbed or partially abated by packing our own food and eating "breakfast" in the room, but this honestly is not that outlandish of a food plan and it doesn't include any table service restaurants.
• I hear the resort parking fee might be gone but any savings there will probably get eaten by higher fuel and hotel costs (of course unless I want to risk my family's safety by alternating drivers over a 20 hour straight drive hoping a 5 year old can handle being in the car that long).

But add at least $600 if we want to go to the MK Halloween party. If we don't we get to pay full MK price for fewer park hours or have to go to another park that day.

 

[Agent H]

Anyone jealous of toiling around Orlando and putting it online honestly has no wisdom

That’s not “living the dream”…it’s wasting time denying yourself everything else in life

Everything gets old. That’s the truth.

It doesn’t get old for me to do the thing you love as your job seems like a great idea