Has disney crossed the price threshold for most families?

[Davey Jones II]

There is very little reason to stay at the Disney hotels in Anaheim. The offsite hotels on Harbor are actually closer to the front gate, < 10 minute walk, than the Disneyland Hotel or the Paradise Pier Hotel. We stay at the Candy Cane Inn for about $!60 per night which includes free parking and free breakfast.

Right. There are a lot of nice, reasonably priced hotels near Disneyland. Staying "on-site" is really meaningless at DLR because both theme parks are within walking distance of many hotels (and right next to each other), or you can take the bus line going down Harbor. In addition, the two Disney hotels there are outrageously expensive.

 

[ZeeWP]

I mean... I wanna blame Disney, and to a certain extent I do, but this has been the trend in this country for 35 40 years now. Inflation has skyrocketed, income has not. The median family income has jumped in the last few years, but not at the cost of goods and services.

In the 90's we were solidly middle class, and I think Disney was affordable for our family then, although it was a stretch. I would consider us upper-middle-class now, but the only way we can truly afford a Disney vacation is because of military pricing. I do think over time Disney has gotten more expensive for certain income brackets.

But so has everything else.

Also, the population has gotten bigger. Disney World crowded when I did the college program (2004-2005) is nothing compared to Disney world crowded pre-COVID. I think that's where the Yield Management (mega surge pricing for us little people) has come to play, practically speaking.

 

[Garyjames220]

People on these boards are such a minute percentage of people who go to WDW so I would take complaints here with a grain of salt. If Disney notices a drop in visitors they will offer deals on packages or other promotions. Prices on everything has gone up drastically lately. My husband was in CA for business last week and gas was over $5 a gallon!
At least with vacations you can decide to go somewhere else or not go at all - not the case with groceries. If you want a budget WDW vacation you can drive, stay offsite and bring your food. But people aren’t going to stop going to Disney - it’s always been expensive - if people want to go they will find a way. Heck six families in my small middle class neighborhood are all going to WDW sometime in the next two months so I don’t think it will be empty. And wait till international guests start arriving!

not sure I fancy driving from Scotland to save money

 

[Jmljasmine]

Our next trip will be our last. We had promised our kids to reschedule the COVID trip and I won't back out of a promise unless I can't avoid it. After that, I think we'll look elsewhere.

 

[CBMom01]

My first two trips to Disney I stayed at Contemporary and it was a splurge - I was willing to splurge to fulfil that childhood fantasy. That was 2015. I wouldn't even consider paying the going rate at

not sure I fancy driving from Scotland to save money

Roads get a bit dodgey west of Glasgow?

 

[Kmilos1024]

For us a millennial family with two kids, the cost is nothing to sneeze at, but the value resorts aren't much worse than a typical hotel or rental. The thing I am amazed at, is the food prices. They aren't even close to any other vacation destination I've seen. Have their always been so ridiculous? It's been years since I've been.

 

[Tornat]

I think our 10 day dvc trips will turn into like 3 days of Disney and doing things out of the Disney bubble . They burst it there loss not mine I’m not raising my trip budgets . There $15 burger that is now $25. Screw that I’ll make my own burger for $2 . I mean half of there burgers are frozen microwave ones ( looking at you sci-fi dinner ). Wdw is feeling very dated to right now too .

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

It's not just the money for me, it's the added hassle. I can well afford all of WDW's recent changes, but I resent the loss of value and ease. When I was a kid we were lower-middle class, stayed in a motel, could only afford a two-day ticket, and stood in long lines the whole time on my single childhood visit to WDW. But as an adult, with a higher income, I could travel alone with my children knowing I would have the Magical Express to safely transport us to our onsite resort, all of our ADRs and FP+ booked, reliable bus/boat/monorail service so I didn't have to rent a car, free Magic bands so that I didn't have to worry about keeping track of tickets, and free dining so that I could indulge my kids with all of their favorite treats. Yes, it took a bit of planning in advance, but I enjoyed that aspect, and once I stepped on the plane, my vacation had begun. The delight on my kids' faces when our ME bus pulled up was worth all the money and effort. I got to give my kids what I never had as a child, a luxury vacation where my planning left them feeling like VIPs.

Now? Forget it. Paying exorbitant hotel fees without any perks? Getting up at 7am every morning to fight with Disney IT? Inevitably standing in long lines even if you pay for Genie + because of the long gaps you'll have between reservations, and having to crisscross the parks more because you won't be able to pick the times for your Genie + reservations so that you can schedule things in one area in a row? Blergh. The thing Disney execs are miscalculating is that rich people will pay a lot of money only IF it = convenience. I will pay for Global Entry and Clear, I'll pay or use points for business class seats, same for staying at a deluxe resort at Universal to get the free Express pass. But I'm not paying more in both money and time/hassle at Disney. Universal's getting our vacation dollars this year, and they'll be getting it again when Nintendo World is complete.

 

[CBMom01]

It's not just the money for me, it's the added hassle. I can well afford all of WDW's recent changes, but I resent the loss of value and ease. When I was a kid we were lower-middle class, stayed in a motel, could only afford a two-day ticket, and stood in long lines the whole time on my single childhood visit to WDW. But as an adult, with a higher income, I could travel alone with my children knowing I would have the Magical Express to safely transport us to our onsite resort, all of our ADRs and FP+ booked, reliable bus/boat/monorail service so I didn't have to rent a car, free Magic bands so that I didn't have to worry about keeping track of tickets, and free dining so that I could indulge my kids with all of their favorite treats. Yes, it took a bit of planning in advance, but I enjoyed that aspect, and once I stepped on the plane, my vacation had begun. The delight on my kids' faces when our ME bus pulled up was worth all the money and effort. I got to give my kids what I never had as a child, a luxury vacation where my planning left them feeling like VIPs.

Now? Forget it. Paying exorbitant hotel fees without any perks? Getting up at 7am every morning to fight with Disney IT? Inevitably standing in long lines even if you pay for Genie + because of the long gaps you'll have between reservations, and having to crisscross the parks more because you won't be able to pick the times for your Genie + reservations so that you can schedule things in one area in a row? Blergh. The thing Disney execs are miscalculating is that rich people will pay a lot of money only IF it = convenience. I will pay for Global Entry and Clear, I'll pay or use points for business class seats, same for staying at a deluxe resort at Universal to get the free Express pass. But I'm not paying more in both money and time/hassle at Disney. Universal's getting our vacation dollars this year, and they'll be getting it again when Nintendo World is complete.

*standing slow clap*
Amen.

 

[shawthorne44]

Universal's getting our vacation dollars this year, and they'll be getting it again when Nintendo World is complete.

EPIC looks really interesting. I can totally see us going back to USF for that. And then the passes are so cheap we'll get those, which will mean another trip or few.

Any bets on whether the Disney's Tron ride will be running before EPIC opens? Yeah, I know Tron is supposed to open next year, but I'm not holding my breath.

 

[crisi]

When you look at the general picture back in the 80's and 90's Disney Parks were the in places to go for amusement parks because if you had a small family it was easy and affordable because in the 90's Disney Parks tickets were lower priced and you could get into the parks easily if you found great deals on hotels. But if you look at planning to visit Disney World or Disneyland today it is simply not worth it for the price alone. Disneyland especially has a huge obsession with raising ticket prices and every year they do this habit and it gets pricier and pricier to the fact when families cannot go. But people need to realize is that when you visit Southern CA there are other theme parks besides Disneyland such as Six Flags Magic Mountain Universal Studios Knotts Berry Farm and Legoland in Carlsbad CA. But not only have amusement parks have raised prices it's hit county fairs too and a county fair has become more expensive to go to these days. But if Disney Parks quit raising ticket prices every year and lower the prices Disney Parks would be worth going to again

I graduated in high school in 1984 and had a very middle class upbringing. My father had a professional job, my mother worked part time. Disney was out of reach for us. We made one trip - the year I graduated from high school - because my mother realized we weren't going to get it in - but it was a stretch. We stayed off site. Other than visiting relatives, my family didn't vacation like that - and I didn't know anyone who did - including my best friend whose father was an doctor or my other best friend whose Dad was an airline pilot. I don't think any of us left college with student loans though.

My kids were born at the end of the last century, and for the five years were were together before the kids were born, WE couldn't afford to vacation like that. We took a Disney trip for our honeymoon, staying at the Caribbean Beach Resort. Our vacation life fell together as part of the dot com boom - we got lucky and suddenly had two really high paying careers - enough for plane tickets for an entire family and go places. But for the preceding five years, we were a two income professional couple with no kids who didn't vacation.

I don't think there was a golden age where Disney was "affordable." I think a lot of DISBoarders have made choices to make it affordable - little ones like driving used cars, and not going out to dinner often - or big ones putting off saving for college for instance. But the recent price hikes have made those sorts of steps insufficient for a few more - as each price hike will.

 

[Merlin's Magic]

I graduated in high school in 1984 and had a very middle class upbringing. My father had a professional job, my mother worked part time. Disney was out of reach for us. We made one trip - the year I graduated from high school - because my mother realized we weren't going to get it in - but it was a stretch. We stayed off site. Other than visiting relatives, my family didn't vacation like that - and I didn't know anyone who did - including my best friend whose father was an doctor or my other best friend whose Dad was an airline pilot. I don't think any of us left college with student loans though.

My kids were born at the end of the last century, and for the five years were were together before the kids were born, WE couldn't afford to vacation like that. We took a Disney trip for our honeymoon, staying at the Caribbean Beach Resort. Our vacation life fell together as part of the dot com boom - we got lucky and suddenly had two really high paying careers - enough for plane tickets for an entire family and go places. But for the preceding five years, we were a two income professional couple with no kids who didn't vacation.

I don't think there was a golden age where Disney was "affordable." I think a lot of DISBoarders have made choices to make it affordable - little ones like driving used cars, and not going out to dinner often - or big ones putting off saving for college for instance. But the recent price hikes have made those sorts of steps insufficient for a few more - as each price hike will.

See, and I grew up in a very middle class home - enlisted midlevel military dad, part time work mom in an entry-level position. We went to Disneyland every year. It WAS affordable, and Disney made it so. I don't know if there still are, but there were picnic areas at the front of the park, so much of the time we packed a cooler with lunches/dinner and took breaks to eat. Hotels nearby were affordable for my parents. There were features in the park like the baby care center with its cloth diaper wash so my parents didn't have to buy disposables for the days we were there and the dog kennel so we could bring our pet with us. It wasn't fancy, but it was affordable.
But, I think people vacationed in general much different back then. Most people didn't fly to different states to vacation (we didn't). Even driving that far was a Big Deal. And what people did on vacation was different. The highlight of each year for us was buying a new, rolled up map of the park, a new hat or mug, and possibly a record of the music. We wore out a few records of the Electric Main Street Parade, lol. People today have matching shirts and more elaborate souvenirs and I don't remember seeing an easy to get to picnic area.

When we took our oldest to WDW for the first time, we priced it out, and we lucked into some deals that helped. It ended up being about the same cost as the other vacation we were considering at the time: a cabin for a week in a high interest area. So, we gave WDW a shot and fell in love. We do vacation different than how I grew up, though.

 

[crisi]

See, and I grew up in a very middle class home - enlisted midlevel military dad, part time work mom in an entry-level position. We went to Disneyland every year. It WAS affordable, and Disney made it so. I don't know if there still are, but there were picnic areas at the front of the park, so much of the time we packed a cooler with lunches/dinner and took breaks to eat. Hotels nearby were affordable for my parents. There were features in the park like the baby care center with its cloth diaper wash so my parents didn't have to buy disposables for the days we were there and the dog kennel so we could bring our pet with us. It wasn't fancy, but it was affordable.
But, I think people vacationed in general much different back then. Most people didn't fly to different states to vacation (we didn't). Even driving that far was a Big Deal. And what people did on vacation was different. The highlight of each year for us was buying a new, rolled up map of the park, a new hat or mug, and possibly a record of the music. We wore out a few records of the Electric Main Street Parade, lol. People today have matching shirts and more elaborate souvenirs and I don't remember seeing an easy to get to picnic area.

When we took our oldest to WDW for the first time, we priced it out, and we lucked into some deals that helped. It ended up being about the same cost as the other vacation we were considering at the time: a cabin for a week in a high interest area. So, we gave WDW a shot and fell in love. We do vacation different than how I grew up, though.

And that's part of the difference - we lived a 24 hour drive away from WDW. So you had airfare for a family of five - not cheap - plus car rental. Day tickets have gone from affordable to "Disney really doesn't want people who just want to spend one day there."

 

[wfjny]

I graduated in high school in 1984 and had a very middle class upbringing. My father had a professional job, my mother worked part time. Disney was out of reach for us. We made one trip - the year I graduated from high school - because my mother realized we weren't going to get it in - but it was a stretch. We stayed off site. Other than visiting relatives, my family didn't vacation like that - and I didn't know anyone who did - including my best friend whose father was an doctor or my other best friend whose Dad was an airline pilot. I don't think any of us left college with student loans though.

My kids were born at the end of the last century, and for the five years were were together before the kids were born, WE couldn't afford to vacation like that. We took a Disney trip for our honeymoon, staying at the Caribbean Beach Resort. Our vacation life fell together as part of the dot com boom - we got lucky and suddenly had two really high paying careers - enough for plane tickets for an entire family and go places. But for the preceding five years, we were a two income professional couple with no kids who didn't vacation.

I don't think there was a golden age where Disney was "affordable." I think a lot of DISBoarders have made choices to make it affordable - little ones like driving used cars, and not going out to dinner often - or big ones putting off saving for college for instance. But the recent price hikes have made those sorts of steps insufficient for a few more - as each price hike will.

I would say I am 2-3 years younger (graduated in '86).

You are exactly right when you say people have made choices to make Disney affordable. We do drive older cars, and we have chosen that our main vacation spot is Disney. We have traveled, outside of some business travel, to anyplace other than the four hour driving radius around our home, and Disney.

Made some good financial decisions, and made some poor ones. In the end, our DVC & AP decisions I believe were a good value to us. Last year we spent 28 days in the parks. A lot of long weekend trips, staying mostly off-site in hotels that were giving rooms away.

But with the latest round of cost increases, plus the lowering or elimination of some perks, that will definitely change the equation. Should some other rumors (like the sale of DVC) ever come true, that would probably change the equation to the point that we would look to change our vacationing habits, and what we budget for entertainment.

 

[Trinity88]

It's not just the money for me, it's the added hassle. I can well afford all of WDW's recent changes, but I resent the loss of value and ease. When I was a kid we were lower-middle class, stayed in a motel, could only afford a two-day ticket, and stood in long lines the whole time on my single childhood visit to WDW. But as an adult, with a higher income, I could travel alone with my children knowing I would have the Magical Express to safely transport us to our onsite resort, all of our ADRs and FP+ booked, reliable bus/boat/monorail service so I didn't have to rent a car, free Magic bands so that I didn't have to worry about keeping track of tickets, and free dining so that I could indulge my kids with all of their favorite treats. Yes, it took a bit of planning in advance, but I enjoyed that aspect, and once I stepped on the plane, my vacation had begun. The delight on my kids' faces when our ME bus pulled up was worth all the money and effort. I got to give my kids what I never had as a child, a luxury vacation where my planning left them feeling like VIPs.

Now? Forget it. Paying exorbitant hotel fees without any perks? Getting up at 7am every morning to fight with Disney IT? Inevitably standing in long lines even if you pay for Genie + because of the long gaps you'll have between reservations, and having to crisscross the parks more because you won't be able to pick the times for your Genie + reservations so that you can schedule things in one area in a row? Blergh. The thing Disney execs are miscalculating is that rich people will pay a lot of money only IF it = convenience. I will pay for Global Entry and Clear, I'll pay or use points for business class seats, same for staying at a deluxe resort at Universal to get the free Express pass. But I'm not paying more in both money and time/hassle at Disney. Universal's getting our vacation dollars this year, and they'll be getting it again when Nintendo World is complete.

Yes! I couldn't quite put my finger on what was bothering me about Disney these days because it isn't the money. You hit the nail on the head. It's the hassle this all seems to add. I love planning, it was part of the experience for me. These changes make it really hard to plan and Genie just seems to add work while I'm on vacation. I'll gladly pay more for convenience ( I LOVE the paid after hours and the paid early mornings - we did the last Toy Story morning and it was amazing!), but now it feels like I'm paying more for less convenience.

PS, I'd say we are upper class, but I'm not 100% sure since I'm not in the US.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I can readily afford Disney at this point in my life but really see little value with the pandemic changes. The restaurant closings, CL unavailability, and travel restrictions just don’t seem conducive to such an expensive locale.

 

[fairestoneofall]

We are upper middle class. We can afford it, but we also try to save money where we can when planning Disney trips. We're going in January (I want to run the half during the 50th anniversary year). But that may be it for awhile. As a family, we've done some non-Disney trips in the last two years and have had a BLAST. And while we'll always be Disney people, we are finding we prefer to take more trips to less expensive places.

We just took a trip to Atlanta to see the Phillies and Braves play. And I haven't seen my middle son smile that much on any recent Disney trip. We did ALL things baseball and my boys were loving it! We're already planning a return trip next year. And we sure spent a lot less money than we would at WDW.

For us, it's that getting value out of WDW is harder and harder to do. We do not like leaving feeling that they are constantly picking our pockets! And the upcoming paid "Lightning Lane" stuff is--for us--a bridge too far.

(And I totally understand that others feel differently. And that's cool too.)

 

[BostonEd]

DISers whining about ticket prices:


Skiers be like:

 

[Davey Jones II]

For us a millennial family with two kids, the cost is nothing to sneeze at, but the value resorts aren't much worse than a typical hotel or rental. The thing I am amazed at, is the food prices. They aren't even close to any other vacation destination I've seen. Have their always been so ridiculous? It's been years since I've been.

Disney's food prices are about the same as Universal, Six Flags and other parks. Of course, at our local Six Flags park (La Ronde in Montreal) we get the meal plan with our season passes, and that makes it very affordable.

 

[ClapYourHands]

Disney's food prices are about the same as Universal, Six Flags and other parks. Of course, at our local Six Flags park (La Ronde in Montreal) we get the meal plan with our season passes, and that makes it very affordable.

Universal has better prices, especially for table service. Six Flags is overpriced individually and cheap as a meal plan, but inferior quality however you pay for it.