Different Prices for Guests from Different Countries

[Thumper1066]

Can anyone explain why Disney sells vacations at different prices in the UK? I read a lot of posts and I have just been wondering why? I can understand the Brits come over for 10-14 days, but I do to and we paid more for our rooms, tickets, meal plan and they also get what amounts to "shipboard" credit on land trips.

 

[IrishNYC]

To attract them to come to Disney. It's no different than cruise lines offering deals to people from different states.

 

[MomofKatie]

FL residents get special pricing on tickets, as well. I would hazard a guess groups from other countries also get a "deal" that is different from regular prices. Just the nature of the game.

 

[Karin1984]

It's a very common thing in tourism, you also find it at hotels and airlines or even McDonald's And it is just to make the customer pick you instead of your competition.

 

[disneyygirrl]

I would also assume airfare comes into play here. For example, my RT ticket price to Orlando in July is $144. My girlfriend is flying over from Australia, and her airfare is over $1800. I wouldn't begrudge someone paying that exorbitant amount a moderate discount on a room.

 

[BudgieMama]

To offset the airfare. It's costing us around $3000 in airfare this summer. Without the deals, we wouldn't be going, and as it is, Disney will have us on site for two whole weeks spending our money only with them.

 

[norjack]

Hi. As someone from Europe, there are several reasons. First and foremost, airfare is a bit spendy. Having 4 or more full price tickets to come to Florida requires a chunk of money. But besides that, I believe perhaps the main reason is European spending habits. Compared to Americans, Europeans do not have the luxury of taking a lot of stuff with them from home for their longer vacation. Thus, they need to buy everything in the States (Cha ching). Plus, everything is typically spendier in Europe, so many Europeans like to go shopping and spend more on average than a typical American family because, hey, its "cheap" (Cha ching). Add into the fact that Europeans rarely are given discounts, and so if they feel like they are getting discounts here and there, many people are willing to go ahead and pay for all kinds of products and services they may not have normally done, because....well, there was a good sale. And how many times are there really good sales over here? (Few and far between, compared to North America.) So....I would guess Disney sees that they will get above average returns, especially if Europeans stay longer.....again, on average. So in the end, its all about attracting customers and making the most profit possible.

 

[Mom2darlingboys]

We're Canadian and we get the same discounts the US customers get. It costs us almost $2,000 to fly, I stay for two weeks, can't bring much with me, and we have the added cost of the dollar which factors in an additional 15-20% on ALL spending.

In the past Disney has provided Canadian offers, but there has been nothing for the past five or so years. If we go to WDW, it's because we REALLY want to. Or we're REALLY dumb, clearly!

Now I suppose I have the option of driving 27 hours - no, thank you - but it always amazes me that Disney gives Canadians no love. I'm looking for a longer that 10 day ticket the Brits get, but, nope. I suspect it has something to do with charters or group sales. Or just a historical thing that they haven't given up... yet. They have been so shortsighted in recent years, nothing they do surprises me anymore.

 

[amylevan]

Because Disney's research shows that they need to offer certain price points to the European market to attract customers from there.

Do you think Disney offers any discount out of the goodness of their heart?

 

[aaarcher86]

Can anyone explain why Disney sells vacations at different prices in the UK? I read a lot of posts and I have just been wondering why? I can understand the Brits come over for 10-14 days, but I do to and we paid more for our rooms, tickets, meal plan and they also get what amounts to "shipboard" credit on land trips.

I'm side eyeing this real hard.

I'm sure there are plenty of Brits that end up spending more than you do. Americans too.

I've never understood the irritation with discounts offered to others. There's plenty of groups that get things you don't qualify for.

 

[Allison]

Very simple-to attract customers.

 

[ravenclawtrekkie]

Lots of UK folks come to Florida for a month or more. Most of the people I see who are picking up 14-day or 21-day UK Ultimate tickets also have other parts of their trip planned post-Disney. The longer Disney can keep them on property and spending money, the better. Right now I'm seeing a lot of 14-day UK Ultimate tickets that have Memory Maker bundled in as a promotion. The price that my work computer tells me those are worth is FANTASTIC - and I'm sure Disney's not losing money on them.

 

[rastahomie]

I'm glad to share WDW with British tourists. Brits are, without question, the friendliest and most open people at WDW, after the cast members. Especially the kids! They seem to love striking up conversations with strangers! I have treasured memories of little British kids striking up conversations with me, out of the blue, for no reason at all. Those memories would be even better if I could understand what they said

 

[Jadyreen1282]

Who cares? The evening we spent at Epcot drinking Bass with that couple from Liverpool was awesome. I hope we see them again. I hope they get a deep discount.

 

[Davey Jones II]

We're Canadian and we get the same discounts the US customers get. It costs us almost $2,000 to fly, I stay for two weeks, can't bring much with me, and we have the added cost of the dollar which factors in an additional 15-20% on ALL spending.

In the past Disney has provided Canadian offers, but there has been nothing for the past five or so years. If we go to WDW, it's because we REALLY want to. Or we're REALLY dumb, clearly!

Now I suppose I have the option of driving 27 hours - no, thank you - but it always amazes me that Disney gives Canadians no love. I'm looking for a longer that 10 day ticket the Brits get, but, nope. I suspect it has something to do with charters or group sales. Or just a historical thing that they haven't given up... yet. They have been so shortsighted in recent years, nothing they do surprises me anymore.

I can understand the UK discounts, considering the hair-raising prices they pay for flights to the U.S. I think Disney used to offer special Canadian discounts when the U.S. dollar was worth 50% more, then stopped when our dollar caught up. Well, that's no longer the case. The Canadian dollar has been moribund lately, so I do think it's time for Canadian discounts. Come on, Disney, help us out a little.

 

[Maliboo]

To offset the airfare. It's costing us around $3000 in airfare this summer. Without the deals, we wouldn't be going, and as it is, Disney will have us on site for two whole weeks spending our money only with them.

Do places in Australia or Europe offer discounts and deals to Americans?

 

[PSUGuy]

I'm glad to share WDW with British tourists. Brits are, without question, the friendliest and most open people at WDW, after the cast members.

Ditto that. As the pic below suggests, we spend considerable time in the Rose&Crown, we're 'Pub People', but aside from the familiar feel of the place we enjoy 'chatting up' visitors from the UK. Our TV viewing includes a lot of UK comedies and dramas so we're always hunting for new shows recommended by Brits. Also I like to expand my UK slang vocabulary. Just last Oct we were informed that a tosser is the same thing as a wanker. Who knew?!

Bill From PA

 

[BudgieMama]

Also I like to expand my UK slang vocabulary. Just last Oct we were informed that a tosser is the same thing as a wanker. Who knew?!

Bill From PA

And both are rather rude. I just choked on my tea when I read that, Bill!!

 

[Skywise]

I'm sure if Disney could charge the same (or more!) to Brits then they would. I suspect there's a "gentleman's agreement" buried somewhere (trade treaty - agreement to charge less for the parks to get ESPN listed on UK airwaves, deal with the UK airlines, etc) or differences in value between the Euro and the Dollar - more cash being held in Euros could be used for dollar trading/tax sheltering.

 

[BadPinkTink]

For the UK and Irish, traditionally they do cheap family package holidays to Spain or Portugal or the Canary Islands. These types of holidays are affordable so people go every year to the same general area.

A package holiday to WDW in Florida for a typical UK or Irish family is a once off holiday. It is usually booked 12 months or more in advance through a travel agent. The flights are generally through a charter company such as Thompson. As a result, Disney offer discounts and different types of tickets as they know the sales are guaranteed. Its worth Disney while to offer a 14 day ticket to UK and Irish as they know that EVERYONE on the charter 747 from UK is a Disney customer.

Its all about marketing and customer profiles.

Disney know down to the cent just how much different types of people spend in the parks. A UK family of 4 on a once off visit could spend x amount more than an American family of 4 on a once off visit. A UK family of 4 on a once off visit could have very different behaviour patterns than an American family of 4 on a once off visit.

If Disney thought it profitable to offer the 14 day tickets to American visitors they would.