I wonder what would happen if .....

[Jimmy Mouse]

With all the things going on with Disney vs. DeSantis right now, what do you think would happen to Orlando and surrounding areas in Florida if WDW just said enough is enough and shut it all down? I know it's not likely to happen but let's just say it did. They shut it all down. The parks, all resorts, Disney Springs and even DVC but don't put any of it up for sale. They just lock the gates and let it sit vacant. Yes they will face lawsuits from employees and DVC owners but even with that threat, they still do it. How would Orlando look in a year? 2 years? or even in 5? I'm curious to all the responses! And go!

 

[KayMichigan]

Orlando and Florida still have a lot of tourist attractions, including Universal. I imagine they'd keep going with those. They'd lose a major chunk of their tourist revenue but they'd still have assets to promote.

 

[Minnesota!]

It would definitely be a big blow, and the amount of money not coming in would be detrimental to the area. I don't think the entire area would die, necessarily, but a lot of places would.

Restaurants, hotels, car rentals, air b and bs, etc. The locals would be stung by either the lack of people spending money/keeping infrastructure going, or by losing their jobs since they probably work for/with something that Disney being around influences.

Yes, there are a lot of things in central Florida, but most people don't fly there to go to Gatorland or SeaWorld. They just are added benefits for the Universal or Disney portion.

Looking up stats from last year. 50+ million people to WDW property, 20 million to Universal.

Those 30 million or so missing people would be extremely detrimental.

 

[GAN]

Home values would drop, that’s for sure…. then The Villages would just buy up the land

 

[PollyannaMom]

Disney employs almost 75,000 people in central Florida. I think having to absorb that level of unemployment would be a big hit to the state, and the Orlando area would go downhill.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

It would be like Trashco county.

 

[Karin1984]

Disney employs almost 75,000 people in central Florida. I think having to absorb that level of unemployment would be a big hit to the state, and the Orlando area would go downhill.

It would be probably increase the amount of "Florida man did something crazy"-stories.

Also, if people do not go to Florida anymore for vacation, other areas in the US might ger more popular.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Not sure about Orlando, but Disney corporate would probably go bankrupt b/c the US parks have floated a lot of losses on the streaming side. And to close 1 of the 2 golden geese would probably destroy the company, especially since they'd still be responsible for all fixed costs with that location unless they sell it, and that would be an enormous anchor with no benefit.

 

[dioxide45]

Well, the DVC resorts would still be owned by the point owners. They could still make their reservations to stay with no parks or attractions to go to. In order to shut DVC down, they would have to buy out all the owner points at those resorts located at WDW.

You would certainly see a big hit to the Orlando economy but employees would find other work or move to other states to find work. People who travel would spread out and travel to other locations, perhaps also in Florida. They may even still come to Orlando. There are many timeshare resorts in Orlando that will also still have owners.

You might even find another company willing to move in and fill the void. Obviously on land not owned by WDW. Perhaps an Anime theme park or something else. This might take years or decades to come back and you would see a lot of restaurants and hotels in the area close.

 

[goofyernmost]

I wouldn't anticipate Disney just closing and locking the door behind them but it is within the possibility that they might sell the place. It almost happened before and it could happen again, but even if someone bought it to use as a theme park resort it would no longer be Disney. None of the characters and the music that is so much a part of Disney would be gone.

There was talk back in the early 80's that some were just interested in buying it and scraping everything with no intention of having any theme park. Perhaps a development like the Villages. I mean all the infrastructure is there already. That is possible, how real, I'm sure I don't know but they would have some buyers I guarantee it. There are a number of states close to Florida that would wet their collective pants to get a Disney park or two. Even a place like NC that has almost no winter and very few really cold days would be a lot more central to the east coast and still with a lot of facilities for international travel.

They could build new theme parks and be open again, at least partially, in three years. Not much longer than the Pandemic shut things down. Hell, they might even be secretly drawing up plans for one as we speak.

 

[PollyannaMom]

They could build new theme parks and be open again, at least partially, in three years...Hell, they might even be secretly drawing up plans for one as we speak.

Ahh...just like the original "Florida project" when they bumped up against size constraints in California. I could see it...but where?

 

[hopemax]

If Disney were to leave, then you'd have to figure that other companies would start asking, "If things are bad enough for Disney to leave, why do we want to be here?" The second and third order effects could be very destabilizing. If the tourist industry took that big of a hit, then tax liability would increasingly pass to residents which would make FL less desirable as a retirement destination. Combined with climate change impacts like the continuing insurance issue the state deprioritized to focus on Disney... I wouldn't want to be there. Things like the Rust Belt decline will happen somewhere at sometime, and a company as big as Disney leaving... that could be a catalyst if conditions are right.

 

[dioxide45]

They could build new theme parks and be open again, at least partially, in three years.

Not sure they could turn it in three years. They would have to acquire the land (in secret again). Then they may not get the same special district they have today. So they would be up against outside forces when it comes to permitting and environmental impact studies. I am sure there would be people and groups there to try and block them many steps of the way. They might be able to get something the size of a Cedar Fair park up in several years, but nothing to the magnitude they are sitting on today.

 

[LuvOrlando]

They make far too much money to ever consider it. Even with price increases, ticketing turmoil and the rest all I ever saw on here was people passionately raving about how full Disney parks are and how great they are doing, how the disruptions don't affect attendance and such so they'll be just fine.

 

[BrianL]

I think Florida would have a new governor in very short order!

 

[JaxDad]

I think Florida would have a new governor in very short order!

It’s much more likely that if what the OP stated happens, then Disney would have yet another new CEO in very short order.

 

[Beezle2]

I would find myself never in FL again. The only reason I go there is for Disney and sometimes Universal. I'm sure I am not alone. I also think the shockwaves would be overwhelming for the area, just the idea of a major company being run out of business by the state would be dsytopian to me.

 

[goofyernmost]

Not sure they could turn it in three years. They would have to acquire the land (in secret again). Then they may not get the same special district they have today. So they would be up against outside forces when it comes to permitting and environmental impact studies. I am sure there would be people and groups there to try and block them many steps of the way. They might be able to get something the size of a Cedar Fair park up in several years, but nothing to the magnitude they are sitting on today.

I know those obsticles might be in the way, but money and the thought of lots more sometimes tends to speed those actions up considerably. It's not likely anyway, but I see it as possible not probable.

 

[JLTraveling]

Because Orlando still has Universal, I don't think we'd see a Rust Belt level of decline. Especially with Epic Universe going in, I suspect that a lot of Disney fans would give Universal a try. So it would likely blunt the impact. But there would still be enormous shock waves. The massive increase in unemployment would likely tank the local economy, at least short term. Lots of restaurants/bars/hotels/smaller tourist attractions would close, causing even more unemployment. Housing prices would take a massive hit. The Florida Constitution forbids a state income tax, so I'm not sure where they would make up the revenue. I do believe that DeSantis wouldn't be reelected, but Florida has no provisions for a recall election, so he'd still be in charge for the rest of his (brand new) term.

I don't think that selling the parks would be as easy as some seem to believe. Granted it was never a cash cow, or a vital part of the city in any way, but Six Flags New Orleans comes to mind. It closed for Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and never reopened. Yes, it was flooded and not incredibly salvageable without a full rebuild. But SO MANY developers came in over the years with big plans for everything from a shopping mall to an entirely reimagined theme park. And none of them ever actually happened. Literally a couple of weeks ago, 18 years after it closed, a final development plan was approved. Turns out that buying and redeveloping a closed theme park is an expensive, difficult, and extremely political process. And that's just ONE park, with no hotels or anything.

 

[DLgal]

It obviously will never happen, but to get an idea of how it would affect the local economy, just look at what happened to Anaheim when Disney was forced to be closed for 14 months during the pandemic. It was bad. Very bad.