Do you think Walt Disney World will see a low rise in park attendance due to Epic Universe now that Epic Universe is open?

[noonew]

Because the way I see it Universal hopes to make Epic Universe successful and more people will prefer it to Walt Disney World because it will be better with rides that actually work

Epic constantly has 1-2 ride delayed/closed ever since the opening. The thing is most of Epic rides are outdoor that cannot be operated during thunderstorms, which are frequent in the Summer. And one of the indoor ride, Battle at the Ministry, has delayed quite often, which if it happens at the same time when all outdoor rides need to be closed, then it becomes a disaster. There are many reviews that complaint about getting to do just 2-3 rides all day because of the closures such as this one. Epic is still experiencing growing pain and it will take Universal awhile to sort things out with the technical issues. But designing a theme park in Florida with mostly outdoor rides is probably not a good idea if they want to provide people with rides that actually work.

 

[Captain UP]

This could be a "rising tide lifts all ships" situation- people will go to Orlando specifically for Epic U, but will then work in a day or two for Disney World just because they're there.

 

[Minnie1222]

This could be a "rising tide lifts all ships" situation- people will go to Orlando specifically for Epic U, but will then work in a day or two for Disney World just because they're there.

I agree! We went to the opening weekend at Epic and immediately to Disney afterwards. I saw people at Epic in Disney attire, even with mouse ears. At Disney, I saw many girls/women donning Princess Peach headpiece. We waited in line for a Disney ride right behind a group wearing "Epic Universe Grand Opening Team" shirts.

 

[DodgerGirl]

Here's something shocking that my mother found out when she was watching her soap operas in Spanish. It appears that you see more Disney Parks commercials in Spanish and there is no Spanish language commercials for Epic Universe but my father told me now that Dollywood has become the number one theme park replacing Walt Disney World so I think Epic Universe really has serious competition with Dollywood as well. But as I mentioned previously I think Epic Universe will see an attendance rise once Summer begins. Because I think Universal will have Summer packages that contain tickets to Epic Universe and that will cause Walt Disney World to see a drop in Summer attendance once Summer starts

 

[Captain UP]

Here's something shocking that my mother found out when she was watching her soap operas in Spanish. It appears that you see more Disney Parks commercials in Spanish and there is no Spanish language commercials for Epic Universe but my father told me now that Dollywood has become the number one theme park replacing Walt Disney World so I think Epic Universe really has serious competition with Dollywood as well. But as I mentioned previously I think Epic Universe will see an attendance rise once Summer begins. Because I think Universal will have Summer packages that contain tickets to Epic Universe and that will cause Walt Disney World to see a drop in Summer attendance once Summer starts

I was curious about this so I looked up the numbers.

Total unique park tickets sold in 2023:

The 4 main Disney parks: 49 million
The 2 main UO parks: 20 million
Dollywood: 3.5 million

https://www.knoxnews.com/story/ente...st-visited-theme-parks-in-the-us/74908997007/

 

[KPeterso]

Here's something shocking that my mother found out when she was watching her soap operas in Spanish. It appears that you see more Disney Parks commercials in Spanish and there is no Spanish language commercials for Epic Universe but my father told me now that Dollywood has become the number one theme park replacing Walt Disney World so I think Epic Universe really has serious competition with Dollywood as well. But as I mentioned previously I think Epic Universe will see an attendance rise once Summer begins. Because I think Universal will have Summer packages that contain tickets to Epic Universe and that will cause Walt Disney World to see a drop in Summer attendance once Summer starts

Please please please cite the source that says Dollywood is the #1 theme park. And your father is not a source.

As the numbers posted above, Dollywood has much lower attendance. What criteria is making it #1?

 

[PsylockeSmythe]

As the numbers posted above, Dollywood has much lower attendance. What criteria is making it #1?

Located in Tennessee

Psy

 

[Nayan]

I just can't

 

[Captain UP]

For perspective: Cedar Point is open six months a year, and it sells more tickets than Dollywood's main park and water park combined.

 

[BrianL]

Please please please cite the source that says Dollywood is the #1 theme park. And your father is not a source.

As the numbers posted above, Dollywood has much lower attendance. What criteria is making it #1?

I do believe there has been published market research that cites Dollywood as number one in guest satisfaction. Those kinds of reports can vary wildly though depending on methodology, etc. I do think Dollywood generally gets high marks from its guests and fewer complaints. That said, it doesn't do nearly the volume that WDW does, which is bound to elevate the number of guest complaints. Expectations may also play into it, as people may expect Disney to be perfect, and are apt to lower their rating when it isn't quite up to that lofty standard.

 

[KPeterso]

I do believe there has been published market research that cites Dollywood as number one in guest satisfaction. Those kinds of reports can vary wildly though depending on methodology, etc. I do think Dollywood generally gets high marks from its guests and fewer complaints. That said, it doesn't do nearly the volume that WDW does, which is bound to elevate the number of guest complaints. Expectations may also play into it, as people may expect Disney to be perfect, and are apt to lower their rating when it isn't quite up to that lofty standard.

And I do agree. But the OP should not be giving that example without understanding the way or what actually is measured.

As far as I am concerned, those are not comparable competitors. Of course a smaller park with about 7% of the ticket sales/attendance will have less complaints. I do agree that expectation and perception of value could also play into a survey. I would be interested to see a survey ranking theme parks that are much larger with higher attendance against one another.

 

[BrianL]

And I do agree. But the OP should not be giving that example without understanding the way or what actually is measured.

As far as I am concerned, those are not comparable competitors. Of course a smaller park with about 7% of the ticket sales/attendance will have less complaints. I do agree that expectation and perception of value could also play into a survey. I would be interested to see a survey ranking theme parks that are much larger with higher attendance against one another.

Well, that's what I meant by, "vary wildly." There are so many things to consider and ways to measure "satisfaction" and it can all be easily manipulated. Still, this is likely where the idea originated, even if it wasn't clearly expressed by the poster. A simple and polite correction is all that is needed.

 

[Joanna71985]

Here's something shocking that my mother found out when she was watching her soap operas in Spanish. It appears that you see more Disney Parks commercials in Spanish and there is no Spanish language commercials for Epic Universe but my father told me now that Dollywood has become the number one theme park replacing Walt Disney World so I think Epic Universe really has serious competition with Dollywood as well. But as I mentioned previously I think Epic Universe will see an attendance rise once Summer begins. Because I think Universal will have Summer packages that contain tickets to Epic Universe and that will cause Walt Disney World to see a drop in Summer attendance once Summer starts

WDW is not going to lose crowds over the summer