WDW announces ticket price increases
in [Disney Parks]
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From: Lisa Cubbon on 7 Aug 2010 11:07 On 8/7/2010 9:54 AM, Alpha wrote: > Raoul says: > >> But based on a lot of comments >> here, the perception of Disney as a premium product is showing some >> wear around the edges. Once that belief takes hold along with one that >> only the well-to-do can afford a Disney vacation, and they are in some >> real trouble. > > You know though, I've been reading radp for about 13 years, and it seems to > me that in all the time I've been reading, there have always been people > worrying that Disney isn't taking care of the parks the way they should, or > that Disney is getting away from what made the parks great, or it's not as > good now as it was back in the good old days, or whatever. > > Worrying about the parks seems to be a chronic condition of the Disney > parks fan. I'm not saying it's wrong or wrong-headed; it's just the way it > is. > > -- Alpha I agree. Even before when I was reading on Compuserve it was the same. I remember people counting dead lightbulbs at the MK. Lisa
From: BigBob on 7 Aug 2010 13:13 On Aug 7, 11:07 am, Lisa Cubbon <cub...(a)bellsouth.net> wrote: > > I agree. Even before when I was reading on Compuserve it was the same. I > remember people counting dead lightbulbs at the MK. > > Lisa Now we count "dead" restaurants and attractions (e.g. "Temporarily Closed; Operates Seasonally"). Not to mention how many sit-down restaurants we can't dine at (because we didn't make reservations at 7 AM, six-months before we knew we were coming). I wonder if there are people who count "how many attractions did I stand in line 1-1/2 hours for, because I wasn't in the park before noon before all the FastPasses were distributed"? (e.g. Soarin', Toy Story Midway Mania) Personally, I've stopped counting all the attractions that close early, hours before the park does :) In the "good ole' days," when there was an attraction like TSMM, with a 1-1/2 hour line, I'd go next door to something like Walt Disney: One Man's Dream. But, nowadays, Walt Disney: One Man's Dream closed at 3 PM. It's still magical though. I'm sure most people would prefer counting dead light bulbs at WDW to being anywhere else. John, certainly would: "I'd rather sleep in an unairconditioned tent at WDW's campground than stay at the Omni Hotel. I'd rather eat dinner at Casey's than at the finest 5-star restaurant in Pittsburgh. No, I am not exaggerating. I LOVE Pittsburgh. You guys have heard me mention that name in just about every post. But a bad, stormy, hurricane day with having a headache, an upset tummy and a stubbed toe while in WDW is better than a superday in da 'burgh." See, Magical Of course, back in the "Compuserve Era," *everything* stayed open from open to close. I wonder if there are people who count the number of days/per week Fantasmic! is shown? I'm so old, I remember when it was shown nightly. But, today's Fantasmic! experience is magical The stuff dreams © are made of, if light-bulb counters would only let their imaginations ® free! Who wouldn't prefer standing in a block-long line, eight-people wide, for two hours, in the Florida heat and humidity, -- now two days per week -- to a Primanti Bros. sandwich in Pittsburgh? http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.disney.parks/browse_thread/thread/e22fdb436579a0ce/87fef2af72bf6996 (scroll down to my July 30 1:01 PM post)
From: Keane on 7 Aug 2010 13:24 On Sat, 7 Aug 2010 12:23:30 +0000 (UTC), Alpha <notreal(a)verizon.net> wrote: >Lilith says: > >> I'm no economist but this seems rather counter productive and counter >> intuitive. Bad economy, hold onto your income. Go to Disney? Not if >> it's costing me that much more. Higher prices mean fewer visitors. >> Will those increased prices against the remaining loyals be enough to >> increase the bottom line? Big gamble. > >I get what Disney is saying, that they feel the need now to wean the public >off deep discounting. And they said they can tolerate a short-term drop in >attendance to accomplish that. I guess it remains to be seen how much >tolerance they actually have, and how severely they're willing to pull back >on discounting. This is a yearly price increase. Happens every year, the same warning about guests not going because it's too expensive is marred every year by more crowded parks and less room availability. (We won't talk about table service. Let's not push all the hot buttons at once...) There's a good number of guests who won't even see the ticket price, since it's bundled in with airfare, room and (shudder) a meal plan. WDW is also semi-insulated from a bad economy because there are a lot of people who think WDW is a worthwhile expenditure even in a bad economy (and a lot of us here can line up against that wall), and not everyone's economy is bad. WDW is a world-wide vacation destination. Even though Euro's taken a pounding since Greece's problem, there's still a favorable exchange rate between the EU and the US. If you're coming from say...Australia, the price increase will be piddly next to your airfare. And of course, like any addict, you'll pay any price for your next fix... As for cutting the discounts, I'd bet it's going to happen. If you cut a 40% discount to a 20% discount, that's a 33% increase in revenue, and the guest is still getting a theoretical 20% discount. IIRC, 20% discounts were about it 5-6 years ago. That's what made an AP so much more appealing. Even a price increase like that could generate a lot of bucks. Once AoA opens, Disney'll have some 10,000 value rooms, 9000 moderate rooms and probably the same number of deluxes and rental Villas... It's an amazing number... >Disney has done a number of things right lately, things that fans have >cheered. One thing I've often heard fans say is that their loyalty and >frequent business aren't recognized or appreciated the way they wish it >would be. If Disney is planning to offer discounts not widely, but >selectively, maybe this is another area where fans will cheer. > >-- Alpha *cough*John*cough,cough*Lasseter. Disney could reward me by upgrading my room to say, the castle suite for my stay. But I wouldn't count on it. ;-) Keane -- When stars are born, They possess a gift or two, One of them is this, They have the power to make a wish come true... -- Wishes Visit my site: http://keanespics.com
From: Keane on 7 Aug 2010 13:40 On Sat, 7 Aug 2010 12:26:04 +0000 (UTC), Alpha <notreal(a)verizon.net> wrote: >Keane says: > >> (I'd say "Maybe the Dining Plans will go away, too," but I'm not >> kidding myself...) > >Free dining might not go away, but they're whittling down its value so much >that I think there will be fewer takers. > >-- Alpha You underestimate the marketing powers of the word, 'FREE!' ;-) Keane -- When stars are born, They possess a gift or two, One of them is this, They have the power to make a wish come true... -- Wishes Visit my site: http://keanespics.com
From: John Mc on 7 Aug 2010 15:28
Lisa Cubbon wrote: > On 8/7/2010 9:54 AM, Alpha wrote: >> Raoul says: >> >>> But based on a lot of comments >>> here, the perception of Disney as a premium product is showing some >>> wear around the edges. Once that belief takes hold along with one that >>> only the well-to-do can afford a Disney vacation, and they are in some >>> real trouble. >> >> You know though, I've been reading radp for about 13 years, and it >> seems to >> me that in all the time I've been reading, there have always been people >> worrying that Disney isn't taking care of the parks the way they >> should, or >> that Disney is getting away from what made the parks great, or it's >> not as >> good now as it was back in the good old days, or whatever. >> >> Worrying about the parks seems to be a chronic condition of the Disney >> parks fan. I'm not saying it's wrong or wrong-headed; it's just the >> way it >> is. >> >> -- Alpha > I agree. Even before when I was reading on Compuserve it was the same. I > remember people counting dead light bulbs at the MK. > > Lisa I don't think the "neglect" is as blatant these days as it was when Paul Pressler was in charge. When we started going to WDW one could do brain surgery in the restrooms and one hardly ever saw a full trash receptacle. Then along came Pressler and the plush push. I like souvenirs but I don't need to shop for them from one end of a park to the other. These days, I don't know that I see overflowing trashcans but I do notice that grounds keeping isn�t always up to par and the restrooms, while usually clean, are sometimes in NEED of attention. As for the dinning situation, we stay at a condominium at Bonnet Creek so we're maybe 10-15 mins. from any of the parks. We go to a park bright and early in the morning, leave between 11 and 12. Have lunch at the condo, take a nap and maybe go swimming. Then it's an early dinner and back to the parks. While we'll probably get a snack at one of the carts latter in the evening, Disney gets precious little of our food budget. This year we have ressies at Le Cellier for lunch and Chef Mickey's with the grandkids for a LATE breakfast our first day there. Did I book 6 months out? Yes. However, we always start with MK so that makes CM or something else at MK easy and we chose the day for Le Cellier based on the EMH schedule. We realized long ago that Disney wants to separate you from as much cash as they can and the trick is to control ancillary expenses. Yes, we pay for parking but it's in the Handicap lot so the longest walk/wait is at MK. Plus no waiting for a bus that's standing room only once we get on. John Mc. |