Are Disney prices too high?

[JimmyV]

It sounds to me like you're trying to say in a time before modern technological advances, the things they offered were not quite as technological. Amazing.

Look at those pictures and you'll see those concepts are still there today:
* Hiking Trails -- there if you want them. But for a forest like pictured, I can do that 5 min from home. I'll take Maharajah over that.
* Meet Mickey -- still there
* Boating -- still there
* Canoeing & Water sports -- still there
* Beach -- still there
* Golf -- still there
* Castle -- still there
* Trolley -- still there
* Poly & Contemporary -- still there
* Jamboree -- still there
* Horseback riding -- Not interested, but if I was into that I could do it 5 min from home.
* Jungle Cruise -- still there.

All these things are still there.

So what's you're point? How was so much more recreation featured? That's what was available back then because it was a new park. I was there -- could have been the kid on the beach at RC. It wasn't more diverse. They don't advertise people standing in the woods today because that would be silly. People can hike at home.

Are you trying to say the 1970's drew a more athletic crowd? Look at the pics. The kids and parents look like normal kids and parents of the 70's. Typical middle class American 70's families taking vacations. If anything people are far more health conscious today. Look at food intake... smoking... no comparison to the 70's.

You'd rather have Tennis Courts than the Animal Kingdom? Wow that's huge. I am pretty amazed that you like the AK that little. We have Tennis courts at our local park and they're free. I love Tennis. But I would not go to Disney World to play, I'd go walk to the park after work. I also find it interesting that first you advocate more outdoor activities... but then, you advocate how you'd ditch the AK for a Tennis Court. You'd give up the one park that is the MOST like the activities you're saying you like... walking... hiking... nature... animals... something besides roller coasters... your post there is self-defeating. You should love the AK more than the other parks if you were that into nature.

I don't think of WDW as Space Mountain, Everest, RnR, etc. I think of it as a vacation. I think of it as the condo we stayed at, riding the monorail, watching the topiaries go by, the time w my family, the slides at River Country, our time at SeaWorld (before it had roller coasters) and Wet'n'Wild, the nightly Water Pageant, waiting in lines for the first time with my brother on our own, and so on. Maybe you only think of it as the sum of its rides but to lots of people it's more than that.

I don't think my point was all that cryptic. But here is again, and I'll type more slowly.
In the 1970's, people went to WDW for diverse vacations and did lots of the stuff that you bullet-pointed. Today, they do not. On the Disneyland podcast, they have a segment called the "6th Day", which features things that people can do in the Disneyland area on the day that they aren't at Disneyland (since DL doesn't sell passes any longer than 5 days). At WDW, with 4 theme parks, several of which require more than a full day to complete, people take 7-8 day vacations and spend the vast majority of that time in the theme parks and never get around to the bullet-pointed activities, (some of which have been cut way, way back). The tennis center is gone, and the golf courses are "walk on" now. Back then, you called in advance to get tee times that were as difficult to come by as many ADRs are now. If you want to tell me that these ancillary activities are enjoyed today in the same proportion as they were in the 1970's, good luck. I would ask for your personal experience in that regard, but you don't have any. I'm not at all sure why it should be controversial that people enjoyed a wider range of vacation activities when there was only one theme park open than people do today when there are four theme parks open, but you seem to want to make everything controversial. This isn't an opinion. It isn't a theory. It is right in front of our noses. There is a reason why WDW was marketed the way it was back then, and why it no longer continues to be. For a person who believes the Disney always knows what it is doing, and is always doing the right thing, this shift in marketing strategy should be both obvious to you, and in line with the way people currently visit WDW.

What I said...

And I am not whining about the "good old days" being gone. I'd trade AK for a few tennis courts every time.

What you said...

You'd rather have Tennis Courts than the Animal Kingdom? Wow that's huge.

Holy reading comprehension, Batman! I said that I'd rather have AK than the tennis courts, and that I am not whining about the past being better. Sorry, but I stopped reading your post after that because it lost credibility and was veering off in the complete wrong direction.

 

[MrInfinity]

I don't think my point was all that cryptic. But here is again, and I'll type more slowly.

Thanks, the slower typing helps.

In the 1970's, people went to WDW for diverse vacations and did lots of the stuff that you bullet-pointed. Today, they do not.

Speak for yourself. We still do.

If you want to tell me that these ancillary activities are enjoyed today in the same proportion as they were in the 1970's, good luck. I would ask for your personal experience in that regard, but you don't have any.

Huh? Are you saying I wouldn't have personal experience doing non-coaster type activities at Disney World?? How would you know what I do there. We do the things that are alternative to coasters. We've had days where we just mill around, play mini-golf, go swimming, rent boats, and do things in the parks that are not always related to riding. I really don't get why you'd say I don't have personal experience. You know how much experience I have, as you and I have chatted about Disney for 2-3 years now.

I'm not at all sure why it should be controversial that people enjoyed a wider range of vacation activities when there was only one theme park open than people do today when there are four theme parks open, but you seem to want to make everything controversial. This isn't an opinion. It isn't a theory. It is right in front of our noses. There is a reason why WDW was marketed the way it was back then, and why it no longer continues to be. For a person who believes the Disney always knows what it is doing, and is always doing the right thing, this shift in marketing strategy should be both obvious to you, and in line with the way people currently visit WDW.

I think this is more about the people going than anything. You know how people feel. Some folks out here are along the lines of "if I'm paying $400/day to be there I'm not going to spend an hour in a restaurant eating" let alone spend the day playing tennis which they can do for free at home. And other ppl are the opposite, and everything in between.

Holy reading comprehension, Batman! I said that I'd rather have AK than the tennis courts, and that I am not whining about the past being better.

I'd trade AK for a few tennis courts every time. So... you misworded that. I think you meant to write I'd take AK over a few tennis courts every time. Come on the way you worded it was not a fault of my reading comprehension. You'd trade one thing for another is how you wrote it.

Sorry, but I stopped reading your post after that because it lost credibility and was veering off in the complete wrong direction

Alright, if you don't want to read them then so be it.

 

[JimmyV]

Speak for yourself. We still do.

Again,...reading comprehension. I said "people", not you. As is the case with all threads here, the discussions are about travelers in general. If you want to go on believing that ancillary sporting activities are enjoyed today as much as they were in the past, go ahead. You are entitled to be wrong. If we were talking about visits to BBB, or afternoon teas, or stuff like that, you'd have a fighting chance. But water skiing? Tennis? Horseback riding? Boating? To quote John McEnroe: "You cannot be serious!"

Huh? Are you saying I wouldn't have personal experience doing non-coaster type activities at Disney World??

Another case of reading comprehension difficulties. "Personal experience" is in reference to what you personally did in the 1970s. My challenge to you is to tell me if you enjoy as many hours of sporting activities in relation to hours spent at the theme park in 2015 as you did in 1975. That is what this is all about, though you are either unwilling or incapable of understanding. It is about percentages. Ratios. Comparisons. A=% of time doing recreational sporting activities in 1975. B=% of time doing recreational sporting activities in 2015. Is A >, <, or = B? "Personal experience" cannot be read to mean "the stuff you do now". It means: tell me about your visits in the 1970s and tell me what you did in comparison to today. You harp on what you do now, but you have yet to tell us how that changed over time, and what you did in 1975, when those brochures I captured were current.

So... you misworded that. I think you meant to write I'd take AK over a few tennis courts every time. Come on the way you worded it was not a fault of my reading comprehension. You'd trade one thing for another is how you wrote it.

The wording was fine. Especially in the context of the sentence that says that I am not whining about how the past was better. When that is immediately followed by: "I'll trade AK for tennis courts", that is saying: "I prefer what I have now."

 

[brunette8706]

Does anyone know what will become of Hollywood Studios?

 

[mesaboy2]

Does anyone know what will become of Hollywood Studios?

Err, what are you asking exactly? Some small plans were revealed recently, they've kinda been hard to miss....

 

[agavegirl1]

Hi there!

Just curious but can you bring alcohol into the parks? I had no idea lol.

No, you can't. I wait for most of my cocktail consumption at my resort. I have had a few beers at the parks that serve alcohol. The cocktails are just so overpriced.

 

[Davey Jones II]

People have made good points on both sides. As far as reinvestment in the parks, I was on Disney's case before the last D23. But they are definitely reinvesting; the DHS makeover will probably cost (I'm guessing) at least a billion bucks. I heard that New Fantasyland cost $500 million and Pandora is probably north of that figure.

Of course, Epcot still needs work. Hopefully, they'll get around to it once Star Wars Land opens. But 3/4 parks are or have already gotten new lands. I'm pretty excited about visiting WDW in the future.

 

[flicx]

Of course, Epcot still needs work. Hopefully, they'll get around to it once Star Wars Land opens. But 3/4 parks are or have already gotten new lands. I'm pretty excited about visiting WDW in the future.

I'm just hoping the new stuff gets done before I'm too old to ride!

 

[shut_the_front_door]

"Narcissistic" - Now there's a word you don't hear every day.



Awww, I don't think that's a fair comparison at all. How many people buy a one-day ticket to Disney World? I was looking online and you can get an Annual Pass good for the rest of this year and all of next year good at any Six Flags that includes parking for less than $100. That's less than ONE DAY at MK! Then according to a post earlier in this thread you can add a deluxe dining pass that gets you lunch and dinner and a snack every day you go with unlimited beverages for like $90, also good the rest of this year and all of next year.

So sheer dollar for dollar, you get much more at Six Flags. But I know what comes next - "Yeah but it's Six Flags and the food sucks and the parks are terrible and the rides are lame and the bathrooms are filthy and the lines are long and, and, and........" But isn't that what the op was complaining about? That WDW is charging more but going down the road of diminishing quality? How many threads have we read on here about crowded parks, long lines, broken down rides, degradation of food quality, crappy merchandise, filthy bathrooms, rude guests, rude CM's, etc.........and they weren't talking about Six Flags!

Well firstly yes you could get an annual pass but not everyone wants to go again and again, and I was demonstrating the daily price .. and yes believe it or not there are people who buy a 1-day ticket for WdW, my co-worker goes to Florida every year and spends 1day at MK ... she can't be the only one in the world that does that.

I disagree - I look at the money I spend at Six Flags (I have kids, I don't go through choice) and I'm like really? I don't feel I get much more at all. And yes you see many threads on here complaining about Disney (the Disboards put me on a debbie-downer to be quite honest when I booked my first family trip back in 2011 - but not my first trip) and yes, there are some things that have gone down, but others that have gone up and now just about to take our 6th family trip in my mind people make it sound a lot worse than what it actually is.

 

[J'Adore Disney]

Yes, Disney is super duper expensive!
Going to Disney is a privilege; not a necessity.
Some are lucky to go, some are not.
You either give in to the prices or you don't!

"Life is full of tough choices, innit?"

 

[brunette8706]

Disney Parking has increased in pricing from $17.00 to $20.00. That's a 18 percent increase. Disney is out of control. When does it stop or at least increase at a reasonable rate. Shaking My Head!

 

[RedAngie]

Yes, Disney is expensive.

For one day tickets, I think the MK, and DL and California Adventure in Anaheim are worth the cost.
As much as I like Animal Kingdom, I don't think it's worth the price of a one day ticket.
Epcot and HS, not a chance.

Then again, not many people buy one day tickets. Perhaps for MK and the California parks they do. But a one day ticket to the Studios????

 

[mom2rtk]

Disney Parking has increased in pricing from $17.00 to $20.00. That's a 18 percent increase. Disney is out of control. When does it stop or at least increase at a reasonable rate. Shaking My Head!

Seems like good timing to bump this thread up.

 

[bbjunkie]

Disney Parking has increased in pricing from $17.00 to $20.00. That's a 18 percent increase. Disney is out of control. When does it stop or at least increase at a reasonable rate. Shaking My Head!

That must be recent; it was $17 in June when we were there.
That reminded me of a trip I am in the middle of planning because parking where we will be staying is $18 a day.

We will be traveling next July to Charleston, SC for a National Dance Competition for my daughter. After much research, many phone calls, and some wheeling and dealing, I was finally able to secure a hotel room for the low-low rate of $240 per night for 6 nights. I am not joking...this was a deal. That doesn't include the parking fee of $18 per day. (Tried so hard to get them to wave that for our group. Oh well.) So, just to stay there, no meals, no entertainment whatsoever, it will cost $1548. And this was a savings after bargaining for our group of $480. Anyway, after doing some more digging, I estimate it will cost our family of 3 approximately $100 per day for food because we will not eat fast food while we are there. Although we won't spend $30 on breakfast, it's likely we'll go a little over that for dinner. But I'll be conservative and say $75 daily for food. That adds another $450 to the trip. We thought we'd try to go to the beach one day, visit Fort Sumpter, and maybe head to the Aquarium. That will be another $125. So, with very little "extra" activity, our trip (not including the actual travel) will cost us $2123. Our entire 9 day trip with hotel and tickets (8 day park hoppers, water parks fun and more--stayed at Pop, and Memory Maker) was not much more than that at $2600. We spent a little less than $1000 on food, travel, and souvenirs; including gas, etc, on our drive down and back. Based on my recent planning, my opinion is confirmed. Is Disney expensive? Yes. Is it a great value? Absolutely!

 

[mom2rtk]

That must be recent; it was $17 in June when we were there.

Effective today.

 

[momof2n2]

Seems like good timing to bump this thread up.

It makes the actual expense of my campsite even smaller. SMH.

 

[wilkeliza]

Honestly if you think Disney is too expensive the best option is to speak with your wallet and not go! As others have said Disney is a privilege not a right. The company will continue to operate as is and charge what they want as long as they are still drawing in the crowds.

I for one don't find it incredibly expensive but that is just because it is actually cheaper or at least on par with prices based on where I live. I pay much more than Disney prices just going to the ballpark, theater, or concerts.

 

[P'colaBeachBum]

Disney Parking has increased in pricing from $17.00 to $20.00. That's a 18 percent increase. Disney is out of control. When does it stop or at least increase at a reasonable rate. Shaking My Head!

Do what I did...bought Disney stock. The prices at WDW don't seem as bad.

 

[RedAngie]

About 15 years ago some people predicted that attendance would suffer when the one day price hit $50.
About 8 years ago they said the same when the price hit $75.
Then early this year they said attendance would definitely nosedive when the MK price went over $100.

 

[Dannek]

Examples:

Bottled water $3.26
Turkey leg $9.25
Dessert Party $50.00
Hotdogs $8.50
BOMA dinner $45.00 plus
1 day ticket $100 plus
Dining Plan $70.00 plus
Lunch and dinner menus the same price
Refillable mugs $18.00 only 4 refills in 90 minutes lol
Alcoholic beverages $10 $15 plus
Resort pricing exorbitant
souvenirs exorbitant

I think Disney needs to reevaluate their pricing strategy.

It also seems like the quality has gone down too. Anyway these are just a few things. What are your thoughts?

Brunette

Take a look at the top rated resorts in the world. There was a recent article listing about 50 of them. I priced out rooms and food for about ten of them and they were all more than the price that Disney charges for rooms and food at their deluxe resorts. So it's all about what you want and what you can afford. I used regular rooms as well, not special suites at the rated resorts which cost way more than disney room prices, excluding disney suites which are priced similarly.

As for quality, I don't see any difference in the deluxe resorts at Disney than I experienced five years ago. As a matter of fact, Disney does resort refurbs more often that any nice independent hotel that I usually stay in.
But that being said, there are absolutely resorts that are just as nice as Disney Deluxe resorts or nicer that cost less per night, but you won't be seeing those prices at the worlds most highly rated resorts.