Agree to Disagree! DISUnplugged Show March 22!

[KingLlama]

Bacon won't be an upcharge by Disney. I keep bacon in my pants pocket at all times, regardless of the situation.

(cue the "or are you just glad to see me?" joke).

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I apologize for being picky, but you are describing people visiting what everyone has agreed to be a "not inexpensive" Disney theme park as "have nots" based on their parade seat and parking spot.

I am almost 100% certain that these are what is known as "first world problems".

It might be time to broaden our world view.

I didn't mean "have nots" in that they don't have anything but more that the appearance that Disney is catering just to those that are (either via being able to to or willing to) spend more money ... so catering to the 1% of the 1% rather than the 99% of the 1%

Yup - fully first world problems ... but within that already small subsegment their appears to be a feeling of separation

 

[DisneyKevin]

I didn't mean "have nots" in that they don't have anything but more that the appearance that Disney is catering just to those that are (either via being able to to or willing to) spend more money

We can't blame Disney for this as every business on earth caters to those that are able and/or willing to spend their money.

If they don't...they go out of business.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

We can't blame Disney for this as every business on earth caters to those that are able and/or willing to spend their money.

If they don't...they go out of business.

for the record, I am not blaming them at all and think it is fine. I may take advantage of some of these added costs for added experiences if/when I think they are worth it ... and I might be scaling back how often I visit if I don't think the cost/benefit is there

I appreciate Disney trying to cater to different people and know their top priority is maximizing revenues and adding to long-term shareholder value ... if they push things too far and too many people feel like how some have posted or how some commented during the podcast then that will negatively impact shareholder value - but they are a long way away from that point

 

[Tonyz]

I just want to thank Kevin for his prolonged investment in this discussion. It's so great that we have someone from the show to actually discuss this stuff with.

(Actually, I should thank Jackie too. Love whenever anyone from the show posts here!)

 

[dansyr2514]

I love Disney but I'm also not a Kool Aid drinker anymore. Disney as an experience and Disney as a company are 2 different things. I don't have a problem with special events. As many others have mentioned, I do have a problem of what may come from these overpriced special events in the future. I have no problem with anyone who wants to spend money to go to V&A's and something like that. If that is where they choose to spend their money regardless of their financial status...go for it. You spend your money on what you value as an experience. One of the things I choose to spend my money on is the Halloween or Christmas party. What I fear is that Disney will use this after hours event as a benchmark for what people will pay for special events. The increases keep coming ...one after the other and fast and furious. I have an AP and have traveled from PA to the parks 4x in the last 12 months. Each time I go, I'm getting less and less. Less cast member interaction because they've cut their hours, less rides because so many are closed right now. And yes...the bathrooms at times are filthy. I paid $100 more for my AP this year and I'm getting less for it. I see a trend and I'm not loving it. The things that have been talked about, premium parking, resort fees, special events, ticket price tiering, large AP increases one right after the other seem like a desperate money grab. However, not one of them is enhancing my experience. All of the nickel and diming that is going on makes me start to equate Disney with any other theme park in my area. Disney for me is starting to lose it's magic. Right now, I'm still have a couple trips planned on my current AP. However, depending on how things pan out with all of this, I may not renew my AP next year and start going other places. I never thought I'd hear myself say that.

 

[pontikes67]

I don't have statistics and I'm not invested enough to search for them.

My point is that none of this is new.

Walt allowed companies to rent parts of Disneyland for private events.

Most successful businesses look for way to monetize what they have.

Because there is an emotional attachment to Disney, this seems personal.

It's not.

My brother worked for McDonald's Corporate for years. They regularly rented one of the Disney parks for their owners for their National Meeting. Pretty sweet perk!