If Disney were alive today, would he like or dislike want his going on in his company?

[Hikergirl]

I don't know because I never knew the man.
However I don't see many businessmen suddenly deciding to stop making a profit because they didn't like all the money they were getting.
My guess is that Walt may not have agreed to some things, but I doubt that means he wouldn't always be looking to make a profit.

 

[ThistleMae]

All I can say is that I love DW, and it is magical for me and my family. So...if it's supposed to be the most magical place on earth, and that was Walt's vision, then I think he would approve, because it is still magical for all the Disney fans out there. Yes we can nitpick about this and that, we all do it, but I don't think non-Disney fans would be posting on this Disney site if they weren't fans.

 

[luvsJack]

I don't know because I never knew the man.
However I don't see many businessmen suddenly deciding to stop making a profit because they didn't like all the money they were getting.
My guess is that Walt may not have agreed to some things, but I doubt that means he wouldn't always be looking to make a profit.

This is true. And I think we have to realize that he would have surrounded himself with the best minds in business that he could get. They would, of course, have been convincing him of the best course of action to keep making a profit. Even if we don't agree with what that course of action would be.

We can't pretend that things would have stayed like they were. He always said that it would continue changing and growing and it has. I honestly think some things would have grown in a different way but who knows.

 

[Ben E N]

The world's population has more than doubled since Walt Disney's death (3.6 billion to 7.7 billion). International travel has become significantly cheaper, and the internet has allowed us to move to a global economy. With that many people competing to get into just four parks, many have to be priced out, or else they would fill to capacity at 9:05 AM every day. It's not a happy thing, but it's unfortunately the way the world has to work.
Disney parks used to be cheaper in order to get enough people into them, not as a form of charity. I am sure if they could have set prices to $100 per day in the 1970's, they would have. Things were cheaper then because that's all that the market could bear.

 

[cabanafrau]

The world's population has more than doubled since Walt Disney's death (3.6 billion to 7.7 billion). International travel has become significantly cheaper, and the internet has allowed us to move to a global economy. With that many people competing to get into just four parks, many have to be priced out, or else they would fill to capacity at 9:05 AM every day. It's not a happy thing, but it's unfortunately the way the world has to work.
Disney parks used to be cheaper in order to get enough people into them, not as a form of charity. I am sure if they could have set prices to $100 per day in the 1970's, they would have. Things were cheaper then because that's all that the market could bear.

Interesting that there is a global economy, yet only four Disney parks for the globe to get into?

 

[Ben E N]

Interesting that there is a global economy, yet only four Disney parks for the globe to get into?

It's a couple of years old, but you may find this interesting:
https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/worlds-most-popular-theme-parks-2016/index.html

Guess where Magic Kingdom falls on that list? And the other three parks also fall in the top 8, even with them being considered their own entities going up against whole theme parks all around the world.

 

[cabanafrau]

It's a couple of years old, but you may find this interesting:
https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/worlds-most-popular-theme-parks-2016/index.html

Guess where Magic Kingdom falls on that list? And the other three parks also fall in the top 8, even with them being considered their own entities going up against whole theme parks all around the world.

How does that change the fact that there are far more Disney parks than four to get into around the globe?

It's also noteworthy that the estimated attendance figures (from a non Disney source) are from 2016, the year in which Shanghai opened to visitors for only half the year.

 

[Ben E N]

How does that change the fact that there are far more Disney parks than four to get into around the globe?

It's also noteworthy that the estimated attendance figures (from a non Disney source) are from 2016, the year in which Shanghai opened to visitors for only half the year.

I'm not sure what you're getting at. Are you trying to claim that there in no international interest in Disney World? If so, where are you getting that information from?
Even if that was your claim, a globalized economy just means that wealth can come from anywhere, not just small pockets around resources. Today, Tennesee has Toyota plants. Those weren't there in the 60's. Oil drilled in Texas can be sold to China, bringing more money there, etc. Its just one of the many ways that has caused the world to be a much different place than in was in the 60's, and that makes the whole "What would Walt think?" questions silly without context.

 

[luvsJack]

The world's population has more than doubled since Walt Disney's death (3.6 billion to 7.7 billion). International travel has become significantly cheaper, and the internet has allowed us to move to a global economy. With that many people competing to get into just four parks, many have to be priced out, or else they would fill to capacity at 9:05 AM every day. It's not a happy thing, but it's unfortunately the way the world has to work.
Disney parks used to be cheaper in order to get enough people into them, not as a form of charity. I am sure if they could have set prices to $100 per day in the 1970's, they would have. Things were cheaper then because that's all that the market could bear.

They aren't pricing people out to keep the crowds down. They are pricing people out because they can and still make a fortune. If they thought they had to stay at a price point to entice lower middle class families, they would. Even if it meant the crowds being at max at 9 in the morning.

Besides, I hope you aren't saying that 7.7 billion people are competing to get in the parks. Not all those people even want to go to Disney. I mean I like it and all but still.

 

[bcla]

Interesting that there is a global economy, yet only four Disney parks for the globe to get into?

I count seven sites.

 

[Ben E N]

They aren't pricing people out to keep the crowds down. They are pricing people out because they can and still make a fortune. If they thought they had to stay at a price point to entice lower middle class families, they would. Even if it meant the crowds being at max at 9 in the morning.

Besides, I hope you aren't saying that 7.7 billion people are competing to get in the parks. Not all those people even want to go to Disney. I mean I like it and all but still.

Ha. No, even if they all wanted to get in there's no way they could afford it. But it just 1% is interested, that 1% still gets doubled. The same is true for any percentage. And yes, Disney will charge every penny that they can get away with (as they should as a publicly traded company). They are more than happy to charge $100 for a "dessert party" that just allows some to stand in a spot that used to be open to the general paying public. Would Roy Disney have done the same in 1971? Who knows? The demand just wasn't there yet, so it's not an apples to apples comparison.

 

[LSUmiss]

To ride everything once, and there were a lot fewer rides then, for one adult would cost $8.70. That is $80.33 today. That is considerably less than a one day ticket today. But still not cheap by the standards of 1955 either. And that doesn't cover food or lodging. Sure if you wanted to just go in to say you were there, it wasn't too bad. But to do the things we do today plus food and hotel wasn't cheap.

And I think it’s not something middle class families spent that much $ on back then. I think only wealthy ppl with a lot of disposable income would have spent that much on leisure back then.

 

[cabanafrau]

I'm not sure what you're getting at. Are you trying to claim that there in no international interest in Disney World? If so, where are you getting that information from?
Even if that was your claim, a globalized economy just means that wealth can come from anywhere, not just small pockets around resources. Today, Tennesee has Toyota plants. Those weren't there in the 60's. Oil drilled in Texas can be sold to China, bringing more money there, etc. Its just one of the many ways that has caused the world to be a much different place than in was in the 60's, and that makes the whole "What would Walt think?" questions silly without context.

I'm suggesting that there's a much bigger world out there in that global economy you acknowledge, and then seem to limit to only 4 Disney parks.

 

[MillauFr]

Disneyland admission was $1 in 1955. Rides cost 10-30 cents. Maybe 9x that to account for inflation. I remember even as far back as the 1980s we always thought of visiting as relatively affordable.

Our family was priced out 40 years ago when I was young because plane flights were so expensive back then. Our family only went twice when I was growing up. Now flights are cheap and our family has gone 5 times this year.

 

[Ben E N]

I'm suggesting that there's a much bigger world out there in that global economy you acknowledge, and then seem to limit to only 4 Disney parks.

I in no way was limiting it to those four parks, just including them in the overall picture. There are people from the US who go to Shanghai Disney, just as there are those from overseas who come to Disney World. Then there are the billions and billions of people who want to do neither. The fact of the matter is, though, that the parks are expodentially more popular today than they were at the time of Roy Disney's death.

If you want to limit things to only the US population, which is not at all giving an accurate look at the whole picture, that increased from 200 million to 336 million since Walt's death. That's a lot more people to contend with in this country alone.

 

[cabanafrau]

I in no way was limiting it to those four parks, just including them in the overall picture. There are people from the US who go to Shanghai Disney, just as there are those from overseas who come to Disney World. Then there are the billions and billions of people who want to do neither. The fact of the matter is, though, that the parks are expodentially more popular today than they were at the time of Roy Disney's death.

If you want to limit things to only the US population, which is not at all giving an accurate look at the whole picture, that increased from 200 million to 336 million since Walt's death. That's a lot more people to contend with in this country alone.

I wasn't trying to limit anything, far from it. I was noting the disconnect between the suggestion of the rise of a global economy while distilling Disney down to a mention of only 4 parks.

It is interesting to note amidst all of that population and attendance growth how Disney has chosen for many years to address that growth at the 4 parks of WDW. Personally I have great disdain for what has arguably been their largest, most strategic investment of the past decade-plus.

 

[luvsJack]

Ha. No, even if they all wanted to get in there's no way they could afford it. But it just 1% is interested, that 1% still gets doubled. The same is true for any percentage. And yes, Disney will charge every penny that they can get away with (as they should as a publicly traded company). They are more than happy to charge $100 for a "dessert party" that just allows some to stand in a spot that used to be open to the general paying public. Would Roy Disney have done the same in 1971? Who knows? The demand just wasn't there yet, so it's not an apples to apples comparison.

See, I think somewhat the opposite on things like dessert parties. There was no demand. Disney created that demand. Same with the infernal 6 month out ADRs. That demand is created.

Its the same marketing technique used for Christmas shopping. Two days after Thanksgiving, ads start talking about "last minute shopping". Huh? That used to be 2-3 days before Christmas. But it creates this thought process that one "must" be out shopping to get it all done and gets people in a shopping frantic that creates more buying. Its a marketing technique that creates a need, same thing that Disney does.

Would Roy or Walt have done it? I have no clue.

 

[Ben E N]

I wasn't trying to limit anything, far from it. I was noting the disconnect between the suggestion of the rise of a global economy while distilling Disney down to a mention of only 4 parks.

It is interesting to note amidst all of that population and attendance growth how Disney has chosen for many years to address that growth at the 4 parks of WDW. Personally I have great disdain for what has arguably been their largest, most strategic investment of the past decade-plus.

Not at all to defend them - Disney is a cold and money driven corporation - but their plans as far as parks go has been working out great for them. Their theme parks division has been outperforming expectations for years, so they are spending that money wisely, as long as you know that their goal is to make money.
They are putting countless dollars into Disney World now, so we wil have to see what the payoff is in 2021 and beyond.

 

[Ben E N]

See, I think somewhat the opposite on things like dessert parties. There was no demand. Disney created that demand. Same with the infernal 6 month out ADRs. That demand is created.

Its the same marketing technique used for Christmas shopping. Two days after Thanksgiving, ads start talking about "last minute shopping". Huh? That used to be 2-3 days before Christmas. But it creates this thought process that one "must" be out shopping to get it all done and gets people in a shopping frantic that creates more buying. Its a marketing technique that creates a need, same thing that Disney does.

Would Roy or Walt have done it? I have no clue.

I have no clue, either. They were never given that sort of opportunity. Those parties started out at $25, and off on the Tomorrowland Terrace. I couldn't imagine anybody saying that's a bad idea to try out. The price started creeping up to $50 in 2016, and has taken off from there. If people weren't paying the money, they wouldn't be charging it.
They tried those stupid $600 tents a couple of years ago. People didn't want them, so they went away.
When there's so many people (20 million+ annually at Magic Kingdom alone), there is bound to be competition for resources. I can't blame Disney for tapping into that.

 

[cabanafrau]

Not at all to defend them - Disney is a cold and money driven corporation - but their plans as far as parks go has been working out great for them. Their theme parks division has been outperforming expectations for years, so they are spending that money wisely, as long as you know that their goal is to make money.
They are putting countless dollars into Disney World now, so we wil have to see what the payoff is in 2021 and beyond.

It seems as if you're laboring under the illusion that I've made a complaint against pricing or being shut out by the rising costs. I haven't participated in that aspect of the conversation.

My comment about the parks is on page one -- a speculation that Walt would be disgusted by the persistently grungy status of several aspects of the parks -- and stunned that the best idea decision makers and imagineering could come up with for a pavilion devoted to the idea of imagination and an inspired and beloved original character could be distilled down to a flatulence punchline.