Anyone else think Disney is getting Greedy?

[Planogirl]

I would venture between movies, dinners, booze, maxed out cable packages etc. the average family can easily knock $300 of frivolous spending from their budget monthly. We made the decision to live without these things.

We do very little that's frivolous and still spend way less on our trips. However, it's your business how much you spend and I'm puzzling on how that topic even came up. If you are saying that the add-ons are overpriced I can agree with that and think that that is true no matter how much someone spends on a trip.

 

[Cyrano]

Folks time to keep this thread on track and stay respectful to all

 

[Disney Frenhines]

To all the naysayers, if you have such objections to anything Disney does then don't go to any Disney parks, vacation elsewhere and quit griping. For the record come to my home county and pay a lot more for grotty hotel rooms with barely enough space to swing a Lucifer or Figaro, pay silly amounts of money to visit local 'theme parks' that offer a fraction of what you will get at WDW, pay a lot more for your food (questionable quality) served by spotty teenagers or miserable old gits, however this area does have spectacular coastlines for which you have to pay high parking fees, but, the beaches are free. As for clean? Ha ha ha ha!!!!! Nope, I consider WDW good value for money and I will only pay for what I want to pay for as Disney do not force anyone to spend anything other than the price of the park tickets.

Also, there is precious little for someone like me to do here which is why I can afford to save for WDW, no decent shopping or movie theatres within easy distance, no place for a single middle aged woman to eat out in peace or without being stared at, I don't just have a vacation at WDW I have two weeks when I feel like I'm having a fun time, I saw X men while eating a really good meal at the AMC, it cost $30 including entrance and tips for the server and it was fab! Besides, the memories are priceless.

 

[Planogirl]

To all the naysayers, if you have such objections to anything Disney does then don't go to any Disney parks, vacation elsewhere and quit griping. For the record come to my home county and pay a lot more for grotty hotel rooms with barely enough space to swing a Lucifer or Figaro, pay silly amounts of money to visit local 'theme parks' that offer a fraction of what you will get at WDW, pay a lot more for your food (questionable quality) served by spotty teenagers or miserable old gits, however this area does have spectacular coastlines for which you have to pay high parking fees, but, the beaches are free. As for clean? Ha ha ha ha!!!!! Nope, I consider WDW good value for money and I will only pay for what I want to pay for as Disney do not force anyone to spend anything other than the price of the park tickets.

Also, there is precious little for someone like me to do here which is why I can afford to save for WDW, no decent shopping or movie theatres within easy distance, no place for a single middle aged woman to eat out in peace or without being stared at, I don't just have a vacation at WDW I have two weeks when I feel like I'm having a fun time, I saw X men while eating a really good meal at the AMC, it cost $30 including entrance and tips for the server and it was fab! Besides, the memories are priceless.

I would come but I don't know what country you are referring to.

Expense is a matter of perspective. We can do fun things that cost way less than WDW and also things that cost way more. As someone else said earlier, each family has to decide if there is value for them.

Plus one problem could be that salaries aren't increasing here lately and some people are finding it difficult to keep up with Disney's steadily increasing prices. There might be a little pain from that too.

 

[davedmaine]

To all the naysayers, if you have such objections to anything Disney does then don't go to any Disney parks, vacation elsewhere and quit griping.

Posts like yours are nonsense. It's possible for somebody to love Disney, but to hate what it's become.

 

[Sparkly]

To all the naysayers, if you have such objections to anything Disney does then don't go to any Disney parks, vacation elsewhere and quit griping. For the record come to my home county and pay a lot more for grotty hotel rooms with barely enough space to swing a Lucifer or Figaro, pay silly amounts of money to visit local 'theme parks' that offer a fraction of what you will get at WDW, pay a lot more for your food (questionable quality) served by spotty teenagers or miserable old gits, however this area does have spectacular coastlines for which you have to pay high parking fees, but, the beaches are free. As for clean? Ha ha ha ha!!!!! Nope, I consider WDW good value for money and I will only pay for what I want to pay for as Disney do not force anyone to spend anything other than the price of the park tickets.

Also, there is precious little for someone like me to do here which is why I can afford to save for WDW, no decent shopping or movie theatres within easy distance, no place for a single middle aged woman to eat out in peace or without being stared at, I don't just have a vacation at WDW I have two weeks when I feel like I'm having a fun time, I saw X men while eating a really good meal at the AMC, it cost $30 including entrance and tips for the server and it was fab! Besides, the memories are priceless.

Come down to London and see the fantastic free museums! Great days out for next to nothing. But yeah, the theme parks are really overpriced for what you get. I don't like rollercoasters so Thorpe Park is out and I feel too old for Chessington now. Alton Towers is too far away from us.

 

[surferdave]

To all the naysayers, if you have such objections to anything Disney does then don't go to any Disney parks, vacation elsewhere and quit griping. For the record come to my home county and pay a lot more for grotty hotel rooms with barely enough space to swing a Lucifer or Figaro, pay silly amounts of money to visit local 'theme parks' that offer a fraction of what you will get at WDW, pay a lot more for your food (questionable quality) served by spotty teenagers or miserable old gits, however this area does have spectacular coastlines for which you have to pay high parking fees, but, the beaches are free. As for clean? Ha ha ha ha!!!!! Nope, I consider WDW good value for money and I will only pay for what I want to pay for as Disney do not force anyone to spend anything other than the price of the park tickets.

Also, there is precious little for someone like me to do here which is why I can afford to save for WDW, no decent shopping or movie theatres within easy distance, no place for a single middle aged woman to eat out in peace or without being stared at, I don't just have a vacation at WDW I have two weeks when I feel like I'm having a fun time, I saw X men while eating a really good meal at the AMC, it cost $30 including entrance and tips for the server and it was fab! Besides, the memories are priceless.

 

[JoeA]

I've watched prices rise through the 80's, 90's and to present day and always think, "those greedy bast..." as I book my vacation.

I remember an interview with Eisner when he once said (I paraphrase), "we have so much cash we don't know what to do with it all...and we're raising ticket prices next month!"

Disney is pretty good with testing market elasticity and as long as there is demand they'll charge more.

 

[Suvadoo]

FWIW, I've been to Universal more times than I could possibly count and I've never had someone push a Meal Plan or Express Pass to me

I'm glad to hear it

 

[Kellykins1218]

Do I think they're getting greedy? Of course, they're in business to make money. Do I blame them? Nope, they're in business to make money.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I never said if it was right or wrong. I just feel that all the added cost for some of the privileges takes its toll or the average person. Like I said, if they can get people to pay for this stuff, they will keep adding things to it. I do pay for some of the things that I feel I want. I have been to both Christmas and Halloween Party. Taken tours. But to have to pay for things that everyone can get for free, just not as good, bothers me. Someone on here said 400 dollars is not that much money. Sorry, but it is to me. I have always disliked people who thought they were better than the average person, just because they had more of everything. Having more, does not make you a better person. Greed feeds Greed. The more you have the more you want, or think you need. In the end, it will not get you to the front of the line.

Confused where you're getting this idea. Nobody has to pay for the VIP Tour. It's another optional specialty tour. Nobody has to pay for the Frozen events. Every guest can enjoy the events as part of park admission. Guests can choose to pay extra for additional features. Or not.

 

[BudgieMama]

Confused where you're getting this idea. Nobody has to pay for the VIP Tour. It's another optional specialty tour. Nobody has to pay for the Frozen events. Every guest can enjoy the events as part of park admission. Guests can choose to pay extra for additional features. Or not.

This is crucial for me. DH and I are making our first trip to WDW. We paid for it with the money I inherited from my Grandmother, who we lost last summer. Chances are, money will stop us ever coming back, so we're making the most of it...

I was excited by the Frozen Summer event... and DELIGHTED when they released the Premium Package, which for us feels like good value (save time, alcohol included at the dessert party, etc). I am attending the Villains Unleashed event too (DH isn't, as he didn't feel he would enjoy it enough to justify the ticket for him, and that's fine).

These are opportunities that weren't there when we booked in September. We reviewed them, the cost and the fact that we might never make it back to WDW, and chose to spend a bit of extra cash. No-one forced us to. We made that choice. If we were staying for longer than a week, we might choose to take up a tour, or another offering Disney makes. Or we might choose not to, depending on whether we feel it would enhance our holiday and give us value for money.

 

[Networth]

Opinions don't really matter when it comes to numbers. Empirical data, Disney puts a premium on their products and people are willing to pay that premium so why would would any company wether it's a 1 person mom and pop or an international corporation remove that premium?

Side note it's a resort that's know around the world your going to "pay to play" your not at your county fair. It's like going to play at Pebble Beach and expecting it to cost what a local public course would.

 

[NashBridges]

If you don't already consider yourself "privileged" by being able to spend $12k on a family vacation, I feel very sorry for you.

Best post in this thread!!!!

 

[Mary7116]

I agree. In the past 10 yrs we've gone to Disney 6 times and in that short time frame a lot of things that were once included have since been eliminated and or added as an optional additional cost. Most recently, Memory Maker does not include the CD whereas last years Photopass plus did, pictures are no longer included in character dinners yet the cost has not gone down. I'm not happy about the new Frozen VIP experience and now Disney Adventure or something for $149 to ride most if the roller coasters at Magic kingdom (sounds like another VIP but don't remember all the details).
Even the dining plan has evolved it used to include appetizer and tip and now both are excluded yet dessert has been added. I realize Disney is a business and in the business of making money but can't they stop trying to make money on everything! They seem to be getting too greedy if you ask me.

 

[RescueRanger]

I haven't read this thread (nor am I going to), but my first thought when I read the title was... Is this a trick question?

 

[JoeA]

I agree. In the past 10 yrs we've gone to Disney 6 times and in that short time frame a lot of things that were once included have since been eliminated and or added as an optional additional cost. Most recently, Memory Maker does not include the CD whereas last years Photopass plus did, pictures are no longer included in character dinners yet the cost has not gone down. I'm not happy about the new Frozen VIP experience and now Disney Adventure or something for $149 to ride most if the roller coasters at Magic kingdom (sounds like another VIP but don't remember all the details). Even the dining plan has evolved it used to include appetizer and tip and now both are excluded yet dessert has been added. I realize Disney is a business and in the business of making money but can't they stop trying to make money on everything! They seem to be getting too greedy if you ask me.

Most of the roller coasters at MK for $149? If you ride Space Mountain you road half of them!

I remember paying <$1 for a gallon of gas, and
my school lunch was $0.35. And renting movies on VCR. Everything changes.

Disney (like all public companies) is focused on share holder value. Period. This isn't Walt's Disney anymore.

 

[CinqueTerre]

It seems like everyday some new adventure pops up for Disney. I think it is getting out of hand. I understand the party tickets for Halloween and Christmas. But you can now get glorified FP's for you family for 300 bucks each, see Frozen characters for 60/35 buck per person. I know people will pay for this stuff, or they would not offer it, but when you pay 100 to get into a park, it hurts a little to have to pay more to get the ultimate experience. I know several families that are going to Florida and only getting to do Disney for a day, because of the cost. It just seems like they are nickel and dimeing people every chance they get. what happened to buying a ticket and having it cover everything?

Disney is a publicly traded company that is responsible for answering to their shareholders. So of course they're greedy.

Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures, the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge, has marked the upward surge of mankind and greed, you mark my words, will not only save Walt Disney World, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the U.S.A.

 

[tim123]

Disney is a publicly traded company that is responsible for answering to their shareholders. So of course they're greedy.

Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures, the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge, has marked the upward surge of mankind and greed, you mark my words, will not only save Walt Disney World, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the U.S.A.

Pppllllllllllllaaaaaaaa. Sick.

 

[CinqueTerre]

It's not a matter of want, it's a matter of ability to buy it. I'm paying $12K already for our WDW vacation. Now I'm supposed to justify another $400 for our party to be part of the privileged?

What exactly are you buying that is setting you back 12K? Do you have a small army going with you?

12K should buy the world at Disney.