I think the issue is that you're very focused on the tickets but you need to apply the exchange rate to everything involved in the vacation except flights (which are also often more expensive because of our competitive landscape). I can list those items out but I'm sure you know. It doesn't matter if we book months before, we still have to pay the exchange rate. When it's so unfavorable, it's that much more expensive across all purchases and any cash we exchange to have on hand. So already on tickets alone, we are paying so much more. Imagine that across all categories (food, car, hotel, etc.)
You're also converting the cost back to USD. We don't earn USD and our wages aren't tied to the exchange rate. So in your example, it's $11,280 CAD out of pocket full stop.
Also on your question about the future - - the discount is not always offered.It's a year to year thing. So it may not be offered in years when the exchange rate is better. Folks on this board would know better than me about the history, but it wasn't offered in 2022:
https://plandisney.disney.go.com/qu...rk-tickets-canadian-residents-usually-521078/
It's a great time for Americans to visit Canada!!
Respectfully, I am not “very focused” on the tickets. However, the park tickets for my example family are an over $700 USD savings for Canadians for no other reason than being Canadian. While not the bulk of the cost, that $700+ USD is a significant chunk of the overall cost of a Disney World vacation.
To say that 1 CAD does not have the same buying power abroad as 1 USD is presently accurate. But that statement is almost always accurate. Like, about 99.9% of the time. The question is, how much less buying power does CAD have now versus its historical, comparative value?
Just because they’re both designated as “one dollar” doesn’t mean they are ever supposed to have parity. Much like right now, it would cost $1.22 USD to purchase $1.00 Grand Cayman dollar. The title “dollar” means nothing; it is the arbitrary name given by a country to its currency. (For the most part, I would almost never expect 1 USD to have the same buying power as 1 pound sterling.)
Look to the respective minimum wages, which provide at least a portion of this story; in Canada, whether looking at federal or province-specific minimum wage, the floor is from $15-$19 CAD per hour. Compare to the US ($7.25 USD per hour at the federal level, and in Florida, the home of WDW, it’s $13 USD per hour.)
In my prior example, I deliberately chose mid-2021 as a reference to compare. In looking at the last decade or so, that was the absolute strongest the CAD was to the USD.
In the example that I used in my prior post, I ran the numbers and compared the present, weak time for the CAD, versus that incredibly high point for the CAD. I standardized the calculations into USD because they would need to be standardized to a single currency to be able to meaningfully compare. Further, because WDW operates in USD. The ratios would have been exactly the same if I had standardized my references to CAD instead.
I did apply the exchange to everything involved in the trip. You will note that I didn’t just convert the cost of the tickets. My example accounted for an overall $8,000 USD trip…so, a little more than an additional $5,000 USD, above and beyond the cost of the tickets. To use for airfare, hotels, etc… Given the significant discount that WDW provides to Canadians, when considering the overall cost of a WDW trip, the current, decreased buying power of the CAD is almost completely offset by that discount. The discount has been offered when the CAD was stronger.
The purpose of my postings here is not to pee on anybody’s parade. Quite the opposite. I’m trying to show that objectively, thanks to that significant discount that WDW provides to Canadians, an overall WDW vacation is only a couple hundred bucks more now than it would have been when the CAD was incredibly strong, if there was no discount then. Meaning, it’s not all doom and gloom and there is a silver lining. Now, if people are accustomed to the overall cost of a WDW trip including that significant park ticket discount, even when the CAD was very strong, then yes, there might be a bit of “sticker shock” at the current out-of-pocket.
Sending good wishes to all and hoping everybody here still gets to enjoy the magic!
hope you have a great trip!
Absolutely. It's at the point now where it literally makes a difference as to whether or not we "can afford" to travel to the US. I'd been scrambling to find a little getaway of some kind for between now and the end of the year. I've finally come to peace with not doing anything because the dollars will add up so quickly, when you start to factor in all the little things you're mentioning.
plus we do so much more than just Disney while in Orlando.
