fewer people using DME

[NYDisneyKid]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/the-daily-disney/os-disney-magical-express-20101112,0,2565241.story

 

[ancestry]

I found these paragraphs to be the most interesting - stating that hotel occupancy at Disney is down but yet crowds are up. If this reporting is accurate then I can't imagine that Disney is going to do away with discounts like has been expected.

Falling ridership is clearly linked to a broader slump in hotel occupancy at Disney World. Occupancy in the resort's roughly 25,000 hotel rooms and time-share suites was down a little less than 9 percent during the six months that ended July 3, the most recent company data available.

Disney is scheduled to report results for the July-through-September quarter next month. The Magical Express data suggest the resort's slump in hotel occupancy has continued.

Though Magical Express ridership spiked 5.9 percent in July — the first full month of operation for Universal's Wizarding World — it then plummeted 9.7 percent in August and an additional 4.6 percent in September.

Many industry followers think Disney's theme-park attendance is likely getting a boost from the popularity of Wizarding World, as the huge crowds drawn to Universal also spend time in Disney's parks. But they also say those travelers are far less likely to be Magical Express riders.