Are People Getting a Bit E-Ticket Obsessed?

[Silock]

Obsessed is the wrong word.

But people are sick of seeing Disney penny-pinch its attractions and events, cutting out old favorites in favor of cheaper alternatives.

The more "E-ticket" attractions Disney builds, the less crowded each one becomes, making the parks a more enjoyable experience for everyone.

 

[ArwenMarie]

My wife has a friend who just got back from DL, and she summed it all up -- the trip was maddening, but the pictures are wonderful. Because I'm starting to believe that's what all the Disney Resorts are about -- getting great pictures and fun memories. It's never been about a constant state of thrill -- it's a way to spend a day and give kids chances to do things they can't do anywhere else. The new lands may not be perfect or even all that exciting to us, but they will be unique, just like US and Harry Potter. The rides may not be heart-rendering, but they aren't meant to be -- they are about good pictures and all-encompassing memories.

This sounds corny, but I do find that my memories from our WDW trips are very vivid. It could have something to do with the pictures!

 

[kbelle8995]

Obsessed is the wrong word.

But people are sick of seeing Disney penny-pinch its attractions and events, cutting out old favorites in favor of cheaper alternatives.

The more "E-ticket" attractions Disney builds, the less crowded each one becomes, making the parks a more enjoyable experience for everyone.

This pretty much nails it for me. Plus I think that Disney has had a hand in building the "E-Ticket" fever.

 

[peg110]

I agree with what a previous poster said. For me, I don't need a ton of thrill rides. I get that we want the other attractions to also be amazing. While I have been to WDW 5 times (and planning more) I like the old stuff too. I am still in awe. Once I am there, I forget about the price of the ticket. If I have the dining plan, I forget about the cost of food. My bigger issue with WDW more than ANYTHING else, is the crowds. While I realize bigger crowds means bigger profits, it's getting harder and harder for me to justify that cost to fight the crowds. If MK had 100 "E-Ticket" rides/shows/etc it still would not alter the fact that it's next to impossible to even see more than about a dozen attractions/shows/etc. Okay, 3 FP+ and about 4 or 6 more Stand-by lines, a parade or street show, etc...

I don't notice (too much) that a ride hasn't been "Refurbed" or that a ride got "Re-branded" (as in Maelstrom - Frozen) because it's hard to even get to them.

I know they need the high end attractions and thrill rides, but they need to really work on the "Crowd" issue, because cramming more attractions (a couple here or there) in to an already crowded park, only to bring in more crowds, I don't think will solve the problem.

As another example, A few years ago we had tickets to the Mickeys Christmas Party/Parade. And while it was awesome as it as a "Limited" amount of tickets to be sold, we went again in November/December 2014 (on 2 separate days as well) and the event was as crowded (if not more crowded) as it was during the day. When we spend several hundred dollars MORE to get a "Limited access" event and it seems like the limit was, well, unlimited, it gets very disappointing.

For now we will continue on with going to Disney, but this is another factor that will "Limit" us in the future.

 

[Bobmc27]

I think the reason people are continually wanting more "e" ticket rides or high quality rides in general comes down to one basic thing. And that thing is VALUE do I believe that for the ticket price I have paid I am getting good value. I also think that when as an outsider when I see Disney spending well over a Billion on it's My Magic program and all the stuff that surrounds that it's not value to me it may be great for the bean counters but that's about it. I look at that and say okay Disney what are you adding of VALUE in the parks for me. I'd like to see that much of an investment in say HS in the next two years then we are talking. Right now all we have is some vague announcement of 2 rides that are at least 5 years out and if it's anything like Avatar it will be closer to 7 years for Starwars what will prices be like by then So as far as I am concerned the VALUE of a Disney trip keeps getting smaller. Also it's just not the parks these days where value is getting smaller and smaller just look at the cutbacks things such as the towel animals yes something as insignificant as that has cut back the MAGIC/Value of going to Disney.

 

[newdeal]

to me an e ticket is a ride that people get off after the first time and immediately want to do again. Say what you want about Soarin having stale old projection etc but there aren't many rides that after like 10 years you ride and people still clap in amazement at the end. The new Soarin has a lot to live up to

 

[johde]

To me, an E-ticket attraction is something epic in nature. Rides like Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Spaceship Earth, Tower of Terror, Great Movie Ride, Kilimanjaro Safari, Expedition Everest, Test Track. Some of them may not have aged gracefully, I know some to thing GMR belongs in the list, but when they were new they were something to see.

Parks need their Carrousels and Tea Cups. But people don't travel 1/2 way across the country to see those. You travel 1/2 way across the country because Disney delivers something unique you just can't get at home. Rides like TT and ToT just aren't built anywhere. Dark Rides at other amusement parks weren't build on the scale of a Pirates, Haunted Mansion or Great Movie Ride. Disney was always pushing the envelope.

The Little Mermaid is nice, but in all honesty, other than the fact they were using a copyrighted IP, that ride could have shown up at any of a Dozen different parks.

 

[Grace W]

People want Disney to go big because that was the Disney of old. In walts days and early on when they built MK and Epcot everything was amazing. Disney hasn't necessarily done amazing things in Florida as of late.

I agree. I don't think with the upcoming updates it should be rushed. I think it needs to be done the right way and if it means it will take longer, so be it.

 

[middlechild]

The discussion surrounds value, as in rides / dollar spent. Keep in mind the devaluation of the dollar, it just isn't worth 100 pennies anymore. Way too easy to get more dollars. College tuition is way up, Disney park tickets are way up, as more people have more dollars. Not in comparative terms, but in pure quantity terms. I am amazed at the dollars banks are willing to lend me, way beyond what I am comfortable with. But to get my kids to Disney? Where do I sign? So Disney raises prices and still fills the parks!

 

[sharona]

While it doesn't have to be all coaster style thrill rides, if I won't be thrilled I do want to be wowed by innovation. The last time I was wowed at WDW was the very first time we went on Soarin. Don't get me wrong, I love BTMRR and PP and POTC and even IASW but they are not "wow" experiences anymore, even for first timers. They're nostalgic and fun and well done rides but not innovative based on today's standards. TSMM? Meh... 7DMT? Fun but nothing truly innovative there...

I do agree with the PP who was saying that most people want more "e ticket rides" because they would spread out the masses a bit better and make for a more enjoyable time for everyone.

 

[peg110]

So Disney raises prices and still fills the parks!

Good old supply and demand.

 

[Lee Matthews]

For me, it doesn't need to be a thrill ride like ToT or Everest but i like a bit of originality and not just rides the go in circles like Dumbo and Carpet Ride

 

[smiths02]

E-ticket, doesn't have to be a coaster or thrill ride. I think of TSMM. My DH and kids love that ride, and not just because it is one of the only family rides in DHS. Soarin' would be another good example (although it does have a height restriction). To me E-ticket=thrill ride/rollercoaster, major innovation OR major interaction (like TSMM)

 

[smiths02]

I don't know. I spent a weekend at Winter Park, Colorado, where they had a "Fun City" set up. $53 for a full day pass for a very good alpine slide with a half-hour turnaround first thing in the morning that turned into 90 minutes as the day went on, a rock-climbing wall with a half-hour wait all day, a trampoline jump with a half-hour wait all day and a maze. And a ride to the top of the mountain.

Elitch Gardens here is $46 for the day for a dirty, sort of beaten down park with hour-long waits for all the big coasters, two of the major rides out of service and chipping paint everywhere, where you weren't allowed to even bring in your own water bottles. Water World here is awesome, but it's $44 for the day and everything has at least a half-hour wait unless you pay another $25 for an express pass, and that only helps with three rides.

Theme parks are expensive. I don't think WDW is out of line when it comes to value.

As for new experiences, I think that's natural for people who have been to the parks more than once, and are old enough to write on message boards. But when I think about it, the most amazing innovations they've had have been the queued M&Gs. I hate them because I don't care, but kids do, and it's an experience they can't get anywhere else -- the chance to shake the hand and interact with one of their heroines or favorite characters. I may lament that it used to be special and just a part of the experience to run into them on the street, but my kids positively beam when they get the chance to hug one of those princesses, and it's a feeling that lasts longer than the excitement of any of the Mountains.

My wife has a friend who just got back from DL, and she summed it all up -- the trip was maddening, but the pictures are wonderful. Because I'm starting to believe that's what all the Disney Resorts are about -- getting great pictures and fun memories. It's never been about a constant state of thrill -- it's a way to spend a day and give kids chances to do things they can't do anywhere else. The new lands may not be perfect or even all that exciting to us, but they will be unique, just like US and Harry Potter. The rides may not be heart-rendering, but they aren't meant to be -- they are about good pictures and all-encompassing memories.

I had to TELL my 2-year olds that there would be rides (about a month or two before or trip). There were excited to go because of all the characters they would meet. They are still talking about the trip, and they rarely mention any of the rides, but they constantly mention who they met and who they want to meet next time. Oh, and they talk about "our Cars room" and want to go back there. They had fun on the rides, but staying in a cool hotel and meeting characters was enough.
And people on the DIS constantly talk about how important parades and fireworks are.
Really, meeting characters, having a thrill or two for the adults, and getting a few songs stuck in our head (Tiki Room, IASW), and watching fireworks was enough. Unfortunately for the super fans, this will be enough for most young families to come once or twice, so why would Disney need to invest so much in e-tickets?

 

[adam.adbe]

Unfortunately for the super fans, this will be enough for most young families to come once or twice, so why would Disney need to invest so much in e-tickets?

Honestly, because that actually only works for a small set of their market. Families without kids between 9 and 16 who'd rather hit up Universal, and foreign visitors who typically travel for 7-14 days need more than meet-and-greets and parades to maintain family peace and justify the cost.

Disney's draw is that it offers something for everyone. Lately they've been slipping on a few fronts. For me it's theming: when I saw pictures of the Harry Potter stuff in Universal, or RSR in DCA it really bought home to me how badly WDW was being neglected. For others it's thrill rides, where again Universal has upped expectations of what well themed thrill rides should be. Yet still for others it's simply that the parks are feeling somewhat more crowded which naturally detracts from the theming.

More things to do in more parks thins crowds, increases the odds that everyone in a family gets an experience *they* feel to be worth the cost, and makes the parks a more pleasurable place to be for durations longer than four or five days.

[edit] and to the original question: yeah personally I'm more excited by the thought of Avatar Land than the rides themselves, yet I've never even seen Avatar the movie and quite likely never will.

 

[LeeAndRobin]

It has been said that most people who go to WDW go only once or maybe twice. Ever. And then they are done. If indeed that represents the majority of the market, and in given that attendance is increasing every year, it's easy for me to understand why the suits have a hard time spending huge amounts of money on the parks at WDW. However, they seem to be willing to do it, given Pandora and other recent announcements. Go figure.

 

[Accident]

I think the fantasyland expansion had a nice mix of eticket and other options. I don't see them only catering to eticket needs.

 

[rteetz]

I think the fantasyland expansion had a nice mix of eticket and other options. I don't see them only catering to eticket needs.

The fantasyland expansion didn't have any e tickets...

 

[minnie-apple-mouse]

Parks need their Carrousels and Tea Cups. But people don't travel 1/2 way across the country to see those. You travel 1/2 way across the country because Disney delivers something unique you just can't get at home.

I agree on the unique. 7DMT is unique and a huge draw.

HP did bring folks with only one E Ticket in each. I know many that went just because of HP.

Unique "areas" or "lands" can go a long way to attracting visitors.

That said-WS is pretty unique as well.

Heck Elsa lighting the castle had unbelievable crowds twice a night, certainly not E-ticket, but very unique. Meeting A&E is another one.

 

[Accident]

The fantasyland expansion didn't have any e tickets...

Why would 7dmt not be considered an eticket? Serious question and not sarcasm, I guess I just don't understand the term if it's not.