another ticket price increase? really?

[Ofinn]

Why are people arguing the cost of one day ticket. Who buys those anyway?

A 3 day park hopper to WDW 344.00

A 3 day park hopper at Universal 170.39

So where is the argument about who is cheaper? Yes WDW has 4 parks, but 2 of those are half day parks.

I have always gotten rooms at Universal for less than a Disney moderate. I can stay Club level at Universal for less than a standard room at any Disney Deluxe.

I love WDW and Universal, but there is no question in my mind which one is the better value.

 

[FLchick415]

Why are people arguing the cost of one day ticket. Who buys those anyway?

A 3 day park hopper to WDW 344.00

A 3 day park hopper at Universal 170.39

So where is the argument about who is cheaper? Yes WDW has 4 parks, but 2 of those are half day parks.

I have always gotten rooms at Universal for less than a Disney moderate. I can stay Club level at Universal for less than a standard room at any Disney Deluxe.

I love WDW and Universal, but there is no question in my mind which one is the better value.

That's subjective, really. I can easily spend all day at DHS & AK.

 

[Ofinn]

That's subjective, really. I can easily spend all day at DHS & AK.

This whole discussion is subjective, but the prices are not.

Everyone is going to view value differently. I feel like I'm getting more value out of my 765.00 dollar AP's for my family than the 2700 it would cost me to buy WDW annual passes. Of course I would want the water parks included so the cost would be 3200.

We were premier AP holders to WDW and DL last year. Our passes expired in September. I paid about 3000 for the passes. If I were to buy them today it would be over 4000. That's a huge increase in just 18 months. I can't even wrap my brain around buying annual passes to WDW anymore.

 

[FLchick415]

Agreed. I totally agree if you don't feel like your getting your dollar's worth, you should go elsewhere. Absolutely nothing wrong with that.

 

[dwight16]

Let's all be honest here if your complaining about a few dollar price increase you probably should not be spending the money you have on a Disney vacation. Every year prices go up everywhere. I just had to pay an extra 150 bucks on usair for my flight to Orlando in May so my wife and kid could all sit together. (I booked late and flight was full all my fault) Cry cry cry it's life. Next year when I take my family it's going to cost about 3-5% more SHOCKING prices go up. Last quarter the profit margin on the parks segment was just below 19%. Do you know the PM on the iphone or iPad some of you are reading this on? 38-42% or that pair of shorts you bought at the gap 50-100% all and all you pay for what you get and you get a premium product. It's a business and we all want the next new ride or new park or clean park or nice worker and that all costs money and companies are not charities. Please I really hope some of you go to universal and never come back to Disney will make the lines shorter.

 

[Ofinn]

Agreed. I totally agree if you don't feel like your getting your dollar's worth, you should go elsewhere. Absolutely nothing wrong with that.

3k-4k for AP's is just a lot of flipping money. You add in resorts, travel, food etc. I guess I've just reached the point where I can't justify it anymore.

 

[FLchick415]

3k-4k for AP's is just a lot of flipping money. You add in resorts, travel, food etc. I guess I've just reached the point where I can't justify it anymore.

No argument from me. I'm only one person, thankfully. No children or spouse to speak of, so I don't have to shell out that much cash. You have to do what's best for you and your family and go where you feel like you get the best value.

 

[Ofinn]

Let's all be honest here if your complaining about a few dollar price increase you probably should not be spending the money you have on a Disney vacation. Every year prices go up everywhere. I just had to pay an extra 150 bucks on usair for my flight to Orlando in May so my wife and kid could all sit together. (I booked late and flight was full all my fault) Cry cry cry it's life. Next year when I take my family it's going to cost about 3-5% more SHOCKING prices go up. Last quarter the profit margin on the parks segment was just below 19%. Do you know the PM on the iphone or iPad some of you are reading this on? 38-42% or that pair of shorts you bought at the gap 50-100% all and all you pay for what you get and you get a premium product. It's a business and we all want the next new ride or new park or clean park or nice worker and that all costs money and companies are not charities. Please I really hope some of you go to universal and never come back to Disney will make the lines shorter.

You sound like a nice person. Just kidding.

 

[EPCOTatNight]

Why are people arguing the cost of one day ticket. Who buys those anyway?

A 3 day park hopper to WDW 344.00

A 3 day park hopper at Universal 170.39

So where is the argument about who is cheaper? Yes WDW has 4 parks, but 2 of those are half day parks.

I have always gotten rooms at Universal for less than a Disney moderate. I can stay Club level at Universal for less than a standard room at any Disney Deluxe.

I love WDW and Universal, but there is no question in my mind which one is the better value.

It's not a fair comparison. Like you said, WDW has 4 Parks. 2 of them (Epcot & AK) are extremely rare. Universal has NOTHING to compare them to. Also, Disney provides multiple sources of transportation that Universal does not. WDW gives you more privacy than Universal also. You can spit onto I-Drive from Wet N Wild. While those little things may not mean much to you, they do to me. You can go to WDW and ride a bus, multiple boats, and a monorail for NO CHARGE. Does Universal offer anything like that? While the price increase is problematic to some, IN MY OPINION, WDW is still the better value for families.

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[EPCOTatNight]

You sound like a nice person. Just kidding.

That wasn't nice either.

Sent from my IPad using DisBoards.

 

[eeyoresnr]

You sound like a nice person. Just kidding.

 

[atricks]

It's not a fair comparison. Like you said, WDW has 4 Parks. 2 of them (Epcot & AK) are extremely rare. Universal has NOTHING to compare them to. Also, Disney provides multiple sources of transportation that Universal does not. WDW gives you more privacy than Universal also. You can spit onto I-Drive from Wet N Wild. While those little things may not mean much to you, they do to me. You can go to WDW and ride a bus, multiple boats, and a monorail for NO CHARGE. Does Universal offer anything like that? While the price increase is problematic to some, IN MY OPINION, WDW is still the better value for families.

Sent from my IPad using DisBoards.

I could do without the buses. Universal Orlando is a lot closer to the Disneyland complex as far as layout is concerned. So you don't need the buses, you can walk, or take the boats. The AP rate is without question a better value at Universal right now (about the price of a 3 day Disney base ticket for the power pass, and actually has good discounts)

Being local to Orlando (so this is from a local's point of view), we go to Disney fairly often, but not as much lately because of the FP+ lines, but letting the pass lapse this year, and go to the parks on cast member friends maingate passes whenever they invite us once
or twice a year.

Watching and visiting all the Orlando parks over the last 15 years has been very interesting, Disney had a lot of momentum going into the early 2000s, but really has slowed down since 2008 or so.
Universal came out running with Islands of Adventure in 99, but died down quite a lot until Harry Potter. Since Potter Universal has been on an absolute roll. We still enjoy both, and it may eventually switch around again toward Disney but probably not until the end of the decade.

 

[Mad Hattered]

It's not a fair comparison. Like you said, WDW has 4 Parks. 2 of them (Epcot & AK) are extremely rare. Universal has NOTHING to compare them to. Also, Disney provides multiple sources of transportation that Universal does not. WDW gives you more privacy than Universal also. You can spit onto I-Drive from Wet N Wild. While those little things may not mean much to you, they do to me. You can go to WDW and ride a bus, multiple boats, and a monorail for NO CHARGE. Does Universal offer anything like that? While the price increase is problematic to some, IN MY OPINION, WDW is still the better value for families.

Sent from my IPad using DisBoards.

I would argue that Busch Gardens played the Zoo/Theme park card way before AK so the word "rare" may be a stretch, but it does have better themeing. What is your take on DHS?

Harry Potter very much gives Disney a big run for their money when it comes to both "magic" and themeing. I'm really curious at what the next expansion brings in June.

At Universal they also offer several modes of transportation. Since you are close enough to walk/scooter to the parks I would include that in transportation. They also offer water taxis from each of the resorts to Citywalk/Parks. There is no need for buses.

Universal recently bought up a lot of land across the street that surrounds WnW. There will be big changes coming over there, too. No one would want to spit on Minions, would they?

And speaking of Monorail transportation....what would happen if you could ride one from Universal to the new attraction across I-4?

 

[Ofinn]

That wasn't nice either.

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Geez at least I said I was kidding. I think there will be enough South Americans tour groups at the parks to keep the lines long. I don't think the few Universal defectors are going to shorten the lines for anyone at WDW.

 

[ucfknight]

Any comparison of a 2 park ticket or annual pass to Universal with a 4 parks plus water parks pass at Disney is disingenuous at best.

Let's face it, the average out of state vacationer to Orlando doesn't come more than once per year (making annual pass comparisons moot) and they stay for 1 week.

If we compare like products for someone wanting to do an immersive Disney vacation with someone who wants to avoid Disney completely for their week long vacation in Orlando, the best comparison would actually be between the Disney Water Parks + More ticket options with the Orlando Flex Plus ticket. Both tickets offer 4 theme parks and 2 water parks, although Disney's ticket has additional bonus items:


Disney World 7 day with Water Parks and More (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Typhoon Lagoon, Blizzard Beach, Disney Quest, miniature golf, regular golf): $384


Orlando FlexTicketPlus (Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Wet 'n Wild, SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Aquatica): $360


There isn't much difference right now when you compare like products, and that's before Universal and SeaWorld inevitably raise prices to match Disney. Before the price hike a few days ago, the Disney ticket was $368. Only an $8 difference. I would expect a similar small gap once the non-Disney parks raise their prices.

 

[johde]

It's not a fair comparison. Like you said, WDW has 4 Parks. 2 of them (Epcot & AK) are extremely rare. Universal has NOTHING to compare them to. Also, Disney provides multiple sources of transportation that Universal does not. WDW gives you more privacy than Universal also. You can spit onto I-Drive from Wet N Wild. While those little things may not mean much to you, they do to me. You can go to WDW and ride a bus, multiple boats, and a monorail for NO CHARGE. Does Universal offer anything like that? While the price increase is problematic to some, IN MY OPINION, WDW is still the better value for families.

Sent from my IPad using DisBoards.

I would argue that Busch Gardens played the Zoo/Theme park card way before AK so the word "rare" may be a stretch, but it does have better themeing. What is your take on DHS?

You beat me to it. I would give Busch Gardens 60% OF the themeing and 5 times the rides of DAK. Throwing those parks into the mix, you can get a 6 park flex pass $360 for unlimited admission to 4 Themeparks (Universal, IOA, Sea World, and Busch Gardens), 2 Water Parks (Wet and Wild and Aquatica) for 14 consecutive days. Complementary transportation to TAMPA, Complementary transportation between Universal and Seaworld.

Disney's 10 day park hopper with water parks and more are $469. (a 3 day park hopper with water parks and more is $380). At least for me I enjoy them all, but if I had to pick a favorite, if I had to choose I'd pick Universal Studios over Hollywood Studio and Busch Gardens over Animal Kingdom. I would only put Magic Kingdom in the "rare" category with no equals except Disneyland of course.

 

[Ofinn]

Any comparison of a 2 park ticket or annual pass to Universal with a 4 parks plus water parks pass at Disney is disingenuous at best.

Let's face it, the average out of state vacationer to Orlando doesn't come more than once per year (making annual pass comparisons moot) and they stay for 1 week.

If we compare like products for someone wanting to do an immersive Disney vacation with someone who wants to avoid Disney completely for their week long vacation in Orlando, the best comparison would actually be between the Disney Water Parks + More ticket options with the Orlando Flex Plus ticket. Both tickets offer 4 theme parks and 2 water parks, although Disney's ticket has additional bonus items:


Disney World 7 day with Water Parks and More (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Typhoon Lagoon, Blizzard Beach, Disney Quest, miniature golf, regular golf): $384


Orlando FlexTicketPlus (Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Wet 'n Wild, SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Aquatica): $360


There isn't much difference right now when you compare like products, and that's before Universal and SeaWorld inevitably raise prices to match Disney. Before the price hike a few days ago, the Disney ticket was $368. Only an $8 difference. I would expect a similar small gap once the non-Disney parks raise their prices.

I never said a WDW AP didn't offer more. Of course it does. I swear people can't read on these boards. Is it worth 2,400 dollars more for a family of four than a Universal AP. That's the debate. Is the Polynesian worth 400.00 dollars more per night than Pop century? I think Poly is, but many people would disagree with me. It comes down to what's the best value for you or you family. I think the Universal AP's are a good value for the price. Do I get as much as I would with a WDW AP. Heck no, but I'm also paying 1/4 the price, and I get to experience new rides just about every time we go.

 

[Mad Hattered]

You beat me to it. I would give Busch Gardens 60% OF the themeing and 5 times the rides of DAK. Throwing those parks into the mix, you can get a 6 park flex pass $360 for unlimited admission to 4 Themeparks (Universal, IOA, Sea World, and Busch Gardens), 2 Water Parks (Wet and Wild and Aquatica) for 14 consecutive days. Complementary transportation to TAMPA, Complementary transportation between Universal and Seaworld.

We just met with some family friends last Friday night and explained the current Orlando situation to them. We are meeting at the end of the week to help them buy the 6 park Flex ticket, book one night at Royal Pacific to get the FOTL for two days, their hotel on Int Dr near Seaworld, the hotel on the beach in Clearwater near BG...and a rental car. Or they could have just gone to FL and stayed onsite and done Disney.

 

[EPCOTatNight]

I would argue that Busch Gardens played the Zoo/Theme park card way before AK so the word "rare" may be a stretch, but it does have better themeing. What is your take on DHS?

Harry Potter very much gives Disney a big run for their money when it comes to both "magic" and themeing. I'm really curious at what the next expansion brings in June.

At Universal they also offer several modes of transportation. Since you are close enough to walk/scooter to the parks I would include that in transportation. They also offer water taxis from each of the resorts to Citywalk/Parks. There is no need for buses.

Universal recently bought up a lot of land across the street that surrounds WnW. There will be big changes coming over there, too. No one would want to spit on Minions, would they?

And speaking of Monorail transportation....what would happen if you could ride one from Universal to the new attraction across I-4?

You beat me to it. I would give Busch Gardens 60% OF the themeing and 5 times the rides of DAK. Throwing those parks into the mix, you can get a 6 park flex pass $360 for unlimited admission to 4 Themeparks (Universal, IOA, Sea World, and Busch Gardens), 2 Water Parks (Wet and Wild and Aquatica) for 14 consecutive days. Complementary transportation to TAMPA, Complementary transportation between Universal and Seaworld.

Disney's 10 day park hopper with water parks and more are $469. (a 3 day park hopper with water parks and more is $380). At least for me I enjoy them all, but if I had to pick a favorite, if I had to choose I'd pick Universal Studios over Hollywood Studio and Busch Gardens over Animal Kingdom. I would only put Magic Kingdom in the "rare" category with no equals except Disneyland of course.

You do realize that rare doesn't mean only? Also there are multiple Magic Kingdom's in the world, not just Disneyland in California. The comparison was between WDW and Universal, not Busch Gardens, Hershey Park, Six Flags, etc..... Will all theme/amusement parks be inserted to help bolster your point or will you stay on topic?

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[Mad Hattered]

You do realize that rare doesn't mean only? Also there are multiple Magic Kingdom's in the world, not just Disneyland in California. The comparison was between WDW and Universal, not Busch Gardens, Hershey Park, Six Flags, etc..... Will all theme/amusement parks be inserted to help bolster your point or will you stay on topic?

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I'm pretty sure there is only one Magic Kingdom (and that is in FL), on more than one level (it's called Disneyland in CA...not MK, for example).

In my original post I made one comment regarding BG compared to AK. The rest of it was in regards to the similarities between WDW and Universal that you didn't know existed. I didn't even bring up the movie theater, the putt putt golf, the kids club, the restaurants, the night clubs or anything.

I didn't mean to go off topic.