Price increase show discussion

As to the onsite/offsite "debate"...we typically stay onsite. Last year, we stayed offsite because we won the use of a condo in Kissimmee for a week at a school fundraiser. We talk about how it feels like we never even went to WDW last year. It just wasn't the same. We hated driving to the parks and dealing with the parking lots, trams, ferries, etc. I'd much rather take the buses and other WDW transportation. Then there was the lack of FP+ options at 30 days. I was able to eventually get the ADRs I wanted, so that wasn't an issue. To each his/her own of course, but for us...staying offsite simply doesn't compare.

I've never done offsite as an adult (25-30 years ago as a kid yes) and to me having to fight traffic, driving to the park, parking, walking, tramming etc. would just kill the bubble like you said. I'm glad that it's actually a thing and not just "feelings" or "theoretical". Forget the FP/ADR thing, just having to wake up, pack the car, scream and get everyone moving just to sit in traffic would just ruin my mood.

I drive enough in my daily life in traffic.
 
One thing I’ve noticed about the USA, having been an annual visitor (at least, sometimes bi annual) for the past 28 years - the prices have gone nuts there and Americans seem much more willing in ‘good times’ to throw cash around and don’t baulk nearly as much at rapidly increasing prices as we would in the UK. Funnily enough, I go to the Republic of Ireland a lot, and that has gone the same way as USA.
I amazed what people are quoting for the price of drinks etc. Over here no one would buy them. So it seems to be this philosophy that has helped WDW jack up its prices the last few years. They wouldn’t have got away with it here.
We are also hit by the exchange rate of course.
We do get good free dining plan deals and good ticket deals, but many from the UK are also now baulking at these prices. There is a thread on Pete’s video over on Dibb the UK Disney site, and it is very similar to this one,
 
One thing I’ve noticed about the USA, having been an annual visitor (at least, sometimes bi annual) for the past 28 years - the prices have gone nuts there and Americans seem much more willing in ‘good times’ to throw cash around and don’t baulk nearly as much at rapidly increasing prices as we would in the UK. Funnily enough, I go to the Republic of Ireland a lot, and that has gone the same way as USA.
I amazed what people are quoting for the price of drinks etc. Over here no one would buy them. So it seems to be this philosophy that has helped WDW jack up its prices the last few years. They wouldn’t have got away with it here.
We are also hit by the exchange rate of course.
We do get good free dining plan deals and good ticket deals, but many from the UK are also now baulking at these prices. There is a thread on Pete’s video over on Dibb the UK Disney site, and it is very similar to this one,

Not sure if it is just an American issue, but we do tend to have short memories and think things won't change, etc.

Like when gas prices went way up - hybrids and stuff got popular. As soon as gas prices came down sales of gas gussling SUVs went way up
 
I just hope that anyone committing $1000s more than your usual family vacation is doing their homework and learns about the different things they have to do to make it enjoyable. Or at least make them aware of everything.
you'd think thank but at least anechdotally I have been shocked by how little some people know when they go and commit $1000s for a Disney vacation and then are shocked when they get there and found out there are things called fastpasses or that you can actually make dining reservations or, heck, that there is more than 1 theme park!
Here's the problem. We are all a bunch of Disney fanatics who eat, sleep, and breathe this stuff. We hang out at this site. We watch YouTube videos and listen to podcasts and follow dozens of DisTwitter accounts. We stay on top of every little thing that happens. WE ARE NOT THE TYPICAL GUESTS.

Normal people don't think this way. It would never occur to the average sane person that they need to decide where they are going for dinner 6 months from now when they are on vacation in Florida. It wouldn't even cross their mind that they need to wake up at 6am tomorrow if they want to ride Slinky Dog Dash at 10:45am on November 16th. A WDW vacation is wildly different than anything else in the world. Yes, Disney sends you an email that your booking window is opening. That doesn't in any way make it clear that that window may only stay open for about 90 seconds. We all take this system for granted at this point but if you take a step back and think about it as an outsider, it's really quite insane.
 
Last edited:


Just wondering where you guys are in relation to the price increase discussion....

Has the last round of price increases done it for you as it has for the team? For me I’m still in the game without complaints as I figure it’s going to go up every year not down so I just kind of accepted that this is my hobby and like anything I.e. electronics, vacations, sports game it’s going to go up...

Also they just added a whole bunch of cast members who they have to pay $15.00 soon to...did anyone think Disney would increase their salary out of the kindness of their heart? No way it’s us paying the salary adjustments.

I’m sure one day they’ll price me out too but I’m wondering where you guys stand on this
My wife and I are a little disappointed that they took half of Wilderness Lodge and made it into DVC. They look beautiful, But it was and is our favorite hotel. Unfortunately with making the hotel half the size it once was, and the price on the hotel side has gone up, we have had to try and find a new Disney home. We enjoy our 10-14 day trips each year, and some years we throw in a long weekend between our yearly trips. So the way we travel I would say the price increases have only changed where we stay more than any other aspect of our vacations. I would rather stay somewhere less expensive in order to keep our long trips vs staying at a pricier hotel for less time.
 
@YesterDark has his position and that’s fine but id like to just offer that there is virtually no traffic going to and from most hotels in Orlando and the parking in Disney to tram is effortless, but everyone has their priorities. Again I’d rather take a 5 minute tram then wait in those bus lines
 


I plan barely 40 days out. First trip managed to ride most everything twice. Hated magic kingdom. Hated Epcot. Learned lessons. Will try again and see how it goes soon.

People that don't plan probably never return unless they accidently went on a zero crowd day.
 
Here's the problem. We are all a bunch of Disney fanatics who eat, sleep, and breathe this stuff. We hang out at this site. We watch YouTube videos and listen to podcasts and follow dozens of DisTwitter accounts. We stay on top of every little thing that happens. WE ARE NOT THE TYPICAL GUESTS.

Normal people don't think this way. It would never occur to the average sane person that they need to decide where they are going for dinner 6 months from now when they are on vacation in Florida. It wouldn't even cross their mind that they need to wake up at 6am tomorrow if they want to ride Slinky Dog Dash at 10:45am on November 16th. A WDW vacation is wildly different than anything else in the world. Yes, Disney sends you an email that your booking window is opening. That doesn't in any way make it clear that that window may only stay open for about 90 seconds. We all take this system for granted at this point but if you take a step back and think about it as an outsider, it's really quite insane.

I mean I get it. You don't do any of this stuff for any other vacation. My only point is, when you talk to people who don't know anything about WDW but are considering going they don't think it's a normal vacation. It's considered special and different so with that should be special consideration on how to do Disney right.

But some people don't want to book a restaurant 6 months out.
 
I also want to know what incentive do you have to stay in Disney property? Honestly is the extra magic hours worth getting gauged out in comparison to off site locations? We get some awesome quality hotels offset with our rental car which is still a significant discount plus the off site hotel has free parking and breakfast ...I’m just not seeing it but more power to those who love staying there.

For my family: the Disney Bubble.

We drive ~ 9-10 hours from North Alabama. It's cheaper than flying and I frankly don't mind it. We rarely use Disney transportation to/from the parks. Not to sound dramatic, I don't like being held "captive" by Disney transportation schedule and bus lines at park closing. I already have my car so I drive. For the most part, it also saves us time driving ourselves to the parks - other than MK where it's a toss-up since we have to deal with getting to/from the TTC/MK. I understand others love the Disney transportation system; I don't. So, there's no real benefit in the Disney transportation for us.

We typically stay at value/moderate resorts. We've splurged one time on the Poly and had a blast but don't foresee ourselves staying at a monorail loop resort until 2021 for maybe one of our stays. The EMH sometimes is used by us but sometimes it's not. It's not a big perk for us.

Ultimately, there's no real benefit to us by staying at a Disney resort. And we would undoubtedly save a considerable amount of money by staying off-site. However, I/we just like being in the Disney bubble. It's really that simple.
 
I/we just like being in the Disney bubble. It's really that simple.
I'm curious if, since you have a car, you venture offsite at all?

We've stayed onsite. We mainly stay offsite. The "Disney Bubble" just isn't a thing to us. We don't see anything at all special about staying onsite. In fact, even when we have stayed onsite, we still go offsite quite a bit as there are so many things we like to do off property and so many more (and cheaper) places to eat.
 
I'm curious if, since you have a car, you venture offsite at all?

We've stayed onsite. We mainly stay offsite. The "Disney Bubble" just isn't a thing to us. We don't see anything at all special about staying onsite. In fact, even when we have stayed onsite, we still go offsite quite a bit as there are so many things we like to do off property and so many more (and cheaper) places to eat.

We do. Always stop by Publix the first day to get snacks and whatnot. I go grab Chipotle usually once a trip to get our fix. Last December we had to drive out to get my daughter medicine because she got sick during our trip. We visit the outlet malls and also have dined outside Disney at various places. We keep wanting to go back to our old favorite Cafe Tu Tu Tango but haven't made it back yet. Papa Johns being a 5 minute drive at 9pm is a no brainer. ;)

It just depends on what we need or want to do and how much time we have. But that's another reason I like having our car; we have the luxury to do what we want. Still, I like staying on Disney property. Might be worth noting that for the first 5 or so trips my wife and I stayed offsite in a pretty nice condo. But we made the switch to Disney resorts around 2005 and haven't stayed offsite since, except for an overnight stay at the Holiday Inn nearby, when we decided to make the drive through the night to Orlando.
 
I’m not an AP holder but at the current prices they should include tickets to at least 2 of the AH events or parties. They should also give you access to 60 day out fast passes for 14 days a year ( you select the days just like you would book a hotel or something). Sometimes as I read the restrictions I feel like they are punishing the pass holders lol. It’s insane.
 
Having spent 40 years as an exec. in Corporate America - prices are based on perceived value, or in this case to simply maximize profit (number of visitors vs spend per visitor). Cast member salaries are typically not a major factor.

The crowding and long lines told Disney they were not charging enough. Increasing price reduces crowds and increases spend per visitor. But this is not a good long term strategy. There is a huge demand for a family priced Disney resort. The answer is to use some of their land and capital to add capacity. Either expand the current parks, add a gate, or both.

We recently moved from MN to Kissimmee, FL. We live about 1/2 hr from WDW. Annual pass is expensive, but I have adopted twin teen daughters from Colombia. Any time they are at Disney is time they are not doing drugs, alcohol, on the Internet, or getting pregnant (ALL their friends in Colombia had babies by age 13-17)!

Our planning is limited to whatever fast passes we can get the same day. We eat at a normal priced drive through on the way there. No charge for parking. We go about once a week.
 
Last edited:
I actually think there a number of factors that influence attendance besides just pricing. I believe there is some reservation about the direction the overall economy is headed in (low unemployment notwithstanding; wages are still generally frozen) and add to that all the construction on WDW property and the upcoming mega-event that will be the 50th anniversary celebration...I just think that many budget-conscious park fans are holding off until the parks are in a more finished-state than they are now before they shell out thousands of dollars on a trip they might only get to take once every few years. I believe the hardcore park fans (like me) and DVC patrons are still going to take their regular/annual trips - and that is who is making up most of the park attendance now (that is what I THINK; I have zero data to back any of that up...just a hunch I have). I can and will go to WDW regardless of the construction and have a wonderful time - playing golf, touring resorts, riding what I can ride, eating around the parks, people watching, checking out the fireworks, etc. And I consider myself very fortunate to be able to pay a little more for a better experience, and I kind of like the parks when the crowds aren't insane - even if it means paying a little more.

And FWIW, it's not just Disney's attendance that was down this summer. All theme parks (Universal, Sea World, etc) are reporting lower than expected attendance this year. And as many have already pointed out, while attendance at Disney parks is down, revenue is UP...which was kind of the point of the price increases...J/S!
 
I actually think there a number of factors that influence attendance besides just pricing. I believe there is some reservation about the direction the overall economy is headed in (low unemployment notwithstanding; wages are still generally frozen) and add to that all the construction on WDW property and the upcoming mega-event that will be the 50th anniversary celebration...I just think that many budget-conscious park fans are holding off until the parks are in a more finished-state than they are now before they shell out thousands of dollars on a trip they might only get to take once every few years. I believe the hardcore park fans (like me) and DVC patrons are still going to take their regular/annual trips - and that is who is making up most of the park attendance now (that is what I THINK; I have zero data to back any of that up...just a hunch I have). I can and will go to WDW regardless of the construction and have a wonderful time - playing golf, touring resorts, riding what I can ride, eating around the parks, people watching, checking out the fireworks, etc. And I consider myself very fortunate to be able to pay a little more for a better experience, and I kind of like the parks when the crowds aren't insane - even if it means paying a little more.

And FWIW, it's not just Disney's attendance that was down this summer. All theme parks (Universal, Sea World, etc) are reporting lower than expected attendance this year. And as many have already pointed out, while attendance at Disney parks is down, revenue is UP...which was kind of the point of the price increases...J/S!
Revenue is not up at Disney's US theme parks and resorts. It was down despite Easter falling in their third quarter this year. Revenue was up for the Parks, Experiences and Products segment overall in the third quarter because of a strong quarter at Disneyland Paris and strong growth in consumer product sales.
 
Revenue is not up at Disney's US theme parks and resorts. It was down despite Easter falling in their third quarter this year. Revenue was up for the Parks, Experiences and Products segment overall in the third quarter because of a strong quarter at Disneyland Paris and strong growth in consumer product sales.

Ah yes, I see that now! You are correct sir. *bows deeply* :)
 
I believe the hardcore park fans (like me) and DVC patrons are still going to take their regular/annual trips - and that is who is making up most of the park attendance now (that is what I THINK; I have zero data to back any of that up...just a hunch I have). I can and will go to WDW regardless of the construction and have a wonderful time
Yep. That's us, too. We were there for 2 weeks last month and I'm actively trying to figure out when we can go back. I'd like to shoot down for a few days in February maybe. Just have to convince DW that DD can survive for a few days without us. I don't care about the construction. I don't really care about the prices. We make plenty of money and choose to spend some of it on travel and still love going to WDW despite all of the changes.
 
e to just offer that there is virtually no traffic going to and from most hotels in Orlando and the parking in Disney to tram is effortless, but everyone ha

I agree. Even when I'm driving across Orlando to get to Universal I don't hit any severe traffic. Going to Disney from my hotel there's none. There's usually a tram right there when I park. I like the jokes the tram CMs make. It adds for me rather than takes it away. :confused3
 
Having spent 40 years as an exec. in Corporate America - prices are based on perceived value, or in this case to simply maximize profit (number of visitors vs spend per visitor). Cast member salaries are typically not a major factor.

The crowding and long lines told Disney they were not charging enough. Increasing price reduces crowds and increases spend per visitor. But this is not a good long term strategy. There is a huge demand for a family priced Disney resort. The answer is to use some of their land and capital to add capacity. Either expand the current parks, add a gate, or both.

We recently moved from MN to Kissimmee, FL. We live about 1/2 hr from WDW. Annual pass is expensive, but I have adopted twin teen daughters from Colombia. Any time they are at Disney is time they are not doing drugs, alcohol, on the Internet, or getting pregnant (ALL their friends in Colombia had babies by age 13-17)!

Our planning is limited to whatever fast passes we can get the same day. We eat at a normal priced drive through on the way there. No charge for parking. We go about once a week.

Hi Danin Mn. We live in Minnesota and often wondered about living close to WDW in Florida. But, believe it or not, we love all the seasons in Mn, even winters, although last winter was a bit much:) Kudo's to you for adopting teenagers. My Dad and Mom took in a foster teenager when I left home. They were told that no one wants the teenagers. My fostersister was given a great chance at a good life and she has done just that. She married a college professor and has 3 grown kids. A happy ending:) Anyway, I just wanted to say you are doing a wonderful and difficult thing. Also we love visiting Florida and do every year!
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!






Top