wayneg
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Jul 24, 2003
- Messages
- 24,139
Saw this on another forum. Tactics from Disney to increase turnover.
I have never really looked at onsite dining, enjoying offsite so much but having free DDP this August I have spent hours looking at pics and reading reviews. I can fully understand why our castmember friends won't eat onsite anymore even with their good discount.
I know I should not judge until I have tried but I am shocked how poor value Disney dining looks from what I have seen. Hopefully a few good meals will change my opinon in August.
Quote
Below the Line Price Increases at Walt Disney World
By Len Testa, Co-Editor of The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World and Webmaster of TouringPlans.com
With the U.S. economy in recession, Disney has been doling out discounts at its theme park hotels on a continuous basis since late 2008, and park admission prices have remained stable. Gas prices are still in reasonable territory, too, at around $2 per gallon across most of the U.S. So if youre a planning a family vacation this summer, three of your major trip costs transportation, lodging and tickets look to be pretty reasonable. But if thats as far as your pre-trip budgeting goes, youre in for a surprise when you get to the parks; Disneys quietly been raising prices faster than average, in a host of areas many folks dont think much about before they head out the door.
Stroller rentals are an often-cited example. The cost to rent a stroller for one day at Walt Disney World has increased more than 100% since 2005, with a double stroller now commanding $31. Paying in advance knocks that down to $27 per day, but its still $189 a week. An economy car - a complex machine with thousands of parts assembled by skilled labor and meeting strict operating specifications runs about $155 per week from Dollar Rent-a-Car, or $34 less than the hunk of molded plastic youll be using to push your kids around. Amazon.com lists more than a dozen stroller models (starting at $47) that cost less than Disneys weeklong rental, even if you had Amazon ship it directly to your hotel. That may seem like a crazy thing to do, but the savings can mean staying at a three-star hotel instead of a two-star hotel during your trip.
Perhaps the one area where Disney has been most creative in increasing prices is at its restaurants, where higher prices and fewer choices may surprise folks who hadnt planned on spending $10 per person for lunchtime burgers and fries. At Epcots Electric Umbrella, Disney has dropped its smaller, less-expensive $2.09 fountain soda, offering only a large for $2.39. Italys sit-down restaurant Tutto Italia offers more entrees than its predecessor, LOriginale Alfredo di Roma, but a dish of lasagna will set you back $24, a 30% increase since 2006 (and an 85% markup over off-site Italian restaurants).
Another interesting trend at Tutto Italia is the menu listing of $10 side dishes; some meat and fish entrees that previously had two side items now feature only one. Two people sharing a side dish still increases each entrées cost $5, and thats on top of an average 12% entrée price increase to begin with. If youre used to spending $12 to $15 per person per dinner at home, seeing a bill for double that will send you reaching for the antacid before youve left World Showcase.
Dont forget Disneys relatively new practice, too, of raising prices for buffets and character meals during peak periods such as Easter. These fees typically $2 to $4 per adult increase the cost of buffets from 11 to 14 percent but dont add anything to the menus for the cost.
In retrospect youll see why Disneys extension of the free Magical Express airport bus service through 2016 makes sense to them: fewer transportation choices mean more diners at Disneys resort restaurants. In other words, if you dont have a rental car, youre forced to eat on Disney property.
Youve got a few options, however, when it comes to saving money. One is to split one appetizer and one entrée among two people. The portions are large enough for most folks, and it effectively halves the average cost of a meal. Another option no joking is to order from the childs menu. A number of Unofficial Guide researchers are vegetarians who find certain child menu options more appealing, and theyve never been questioned or denied when ordering off the kids menu.
Finally, use the Internet to browse sample Disney restaurant menus, to get an idea of the food offered and its price. Even worse than paying top dollar is paying top dollar for something you didnt enjoy. And of course you can rent a car, which may pay for itself in meal savings if you take advantage of the many deals on meals available off-site.
I have never really looked at onsite dining, enjoying offsite so much but having free DDP this August I have spent hours looking at pics and reading reviews. I can fully understand why our castmember friends won't eat onsite anymore even with their good discount.
I know I should not judge until I have tried but I am shocked how poor value Disney dining looks from what I have seen. Hopefully a few good meals will change my opinon in August.
Quote
Below the Line Price Increases at Walt Disney World
By Len Testa, Co-Editor of The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World and Webmaster of TouringPlans.com
With the U.S. economy in recession, Disney has been doling out discounts at its theme park hotels on a continuous basis since late 2008, and park admission prices have remained stable. Gas prices are still in reasonable territory, too, at around $2 per gallon across most of the U.S. So if youre a planning a family vacation this summer, three of your major trip costs transportation, lodging and tickets look to be pretty reasonable. But if thats as far as your pre-trip budgeting goes, youre in for a surprise when you get to the parks; Disneys quietly been raising prices faster than average, in a host of areas many folks dont think much about before they head out the door.
Stroller rentals are an often-cited example. The cost to rent a stroller for one day at Walt Disney World has increased more than 100% since 2005, with a double stroller now commanding $31. Paying in advance knocks that down to $27 per day, but its still $189 a week. An economy car - a complex machine with thousands of parts assembled by skilled labor and meeting strict operating specifications runs about $155 per week from Dollar Rent-a-Car, or $34 less than the hunk of molded plastic youll be using to push your kids around. Amazon.com lists more than a dozen stroller models (starting at $47) that cost less than Disneys weeklong rental, even if you had Amazon ship it directly to your hotel. That may seem like a crazy thing to do, but the savings can mean staying at a three-star hotel instead of a two-star hotel during your trip.
Perhaps the one area where Disney has been most creative in increasing prices is at its restaurants, where higher prices and fewer choices may surprise folks who hadnt planned on spending $10 per person for lunchtime burgers and fries. At Epcots Electric Umbrella, Disney has dropped its smaller, less-expensive $2.09 fountain soda, offering only a large for $2.39. Italys sit-down restaurant Tutto Italia offers more entrees than its predecessor, LOriginale Alfredo di Roma, but a dish of lasagna will set you back $24, a 30% increase since 2006 (and an 85% markup over off-site Italian restaurants).
Another interesting trend at Tutto Italia is the menu listing of $10 side dishes; some meat and fish entrees that previously had two side items now feature only one. Two people sharing a side dish still increases each entrées cost $5, and thats on top of an average 12% entrée price increase to begin with. If youre used to spending $12 to $15 per person per dinner at home, seeing a bill for double that will send you reaching for the antacid before youve left World Showcase.
Dont forget Disneys relatively new practice, too, of raising prices for buffets and character meals during peak periods such as Easter. These fees typically $2 to $4 per adult increase the cost of buffets from 11 to 14 percent but dont add anything to the menus for the cost.
In retrospect youll see why Disneys extension of the free Magical Express airport bus service through 2016 makes sense to them: fewer transportation choices mean more diners at Disneys resort restaurants. In other words, if you dont have a rental car, youre forced to eat on Disney property.
Youve got a few options, however, when it comes to saving money. One is to split one appetizer and one entrée among two people. The portions are large enough for most folks, and it effectively halves the average cost of a meal. Another option no joking is to order from the childs menu. A number of Unofficial Guide researchers are vegetarians who find certain child menu options more appealing, and theyve never been questioned or denied when ordering off the kids menu.
Finally, use the Internet to browse sample Disney restaurant menus, to get an idea of the food offered and its price. Even worse than paying top dollar is paying top dollar for something you didnt enjoy. And of course you can rent a car, which may pay for itself in meal savings if you take advantage of the many deals on meals available off-site.
But in defense of WDW they are not the only ones,wait until you go to US/IOA where a bottle of water is 50% dearer than at Disney!
