Is Disney becoming too expensive?

[Timon-n-Pumbaa Fan]

We have been extremely fortunate. We have gone to WDW in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, and have a trip planned at the end of this year. We have stayed offsite, Value, Moderate, and Deluxe. We have stayed for a long weekend all the way up to 8 nights. Our longest trip ever is planned for later this year and it's 9 nights.

The DDP never made sense to me until our last trip. We enjoyed it and it was money well spent. However, with the changes this year and the trip that we have planned to include Florida family members, it's not a good value and would be a waste of money and time.

Park tickets....we find that by investing in the 10 day non-expiring hoppers, we can get 2 to 3 trips in and it's a big money saver when you add in MVMCP or MNSSHP's as part of the trips. Those parties help us to take some time off from the parks and it helps us to RELAX and enjoy our vacations intead of constant go go go.

Our biggest expense with any of our more recent trips has been pet boarding. The cats are no big deal. If we put out 4 litter boxes, lots of food & water in continuous feeders and have our friends come by to check on them a couple of times, they are not expensive at all. However, the three dogs, OMG, we will spend about $1400 to board them during our vacation. Yes, you read that right, we are spending more than twice what we have budgeted for OUR hotel on their pet resort expenses. We are soooooooooooo looking forward to the new Pet Resort onsite. It will cut down on 2 to 3 days of pet boarding fees and let us be closer to the babies while we are on vacation. I can't wait!

The price of a "fun night out" for us runs over $250 usually with dinner and some time out at Dave & Busters. It's about 4 hours of entertainment. When you boil it all down. WDW costs us on average about $600 for 24 hours. I think it's a deal because while "fun nights out" are fun, they are not total escapes from reality like WDW. WDW lets my inner child out to play. It's a joyful place and it's soul healing. A night out at Dave & Busters will never compare! No other vacation experience can compare either.

Yes, WDW is an expensive destination. Yes, I wish it was cheaper, but as long as we can find a way to "afford" it, we will go.

 

[mercydisney]

I think its what you make of it. I personally would go crazy in a value resort with my kids and hubby for 7 nights but thats just me. We do not have to factor in flying so that has always helped the costs in the past. I guess Im just lucky since my kids are asking to go other places and their favorite place now are the mountains in NC. We are going next week for $2000 for 8 nights that includes a townhouse that sleeps 8, food, skiing and gas. I compare our trips up their to disney now and find that I can go elsewhere for a longer period of time for less money.

I also live in FL. Disney use to be a very afordable. Lately we are finding it to be much less expensive to go out of state for vacation. This year we we are going to Gatlinburg, TN.

We are also looking into NC. Would you mind telling me where in NC you are going. We are trying to find other vacations spots.

 

[englishteacha]

I think it depends on how you vacation. Last summer, I was planning a road trip from Maine out to Holiday World in Indiana, stopping at amusement parks along the way. Even Motel 6 rates were over $50 a night, park tickets $40-60 a person, per day, plus the gas prices and food. For kicks, I priced flying to Orlando, renting a car, staying in a condo, and doing Universal. It was SO much cheaper than the road trip. We added SW and BG, but were given free passes. It was a very cheap vacation until the last day...when we were bored. Dh said, "Let's go to Epcot." I said, "It's $71 a day! No way." Then I pondered and said, "Can we afford to buy 10-day non-expiring park hoppers?" Which we could, so we did. We did a 15 hour commando day at Epcot and MK, and rode all our favorites, saw Illuminations and Wishes, and ate cheap counterservice. Now we have 9 days left for future trips. And since we proved to ourselves that we CAN see a lot in one REALLY long day, those 9 days left could get us 3 vacations, if we choose to do it that way. So while a Disney vacation can be very expensive, an Orlando vacation can be very cheap if you plan carefully. The road trip would have cost about $2500 to do and see everything we wanted to. The Orlando trip (minus WDW tix) was about $1400.

 

[jimlin]

Yikes they sure have gone up. Scheduled next january for a week at the fort and amzaed at how much increase for a week, full hookup site in a premium loop. Almost as much as our site plus tickets from last year.

Jim

 

[runwad]

I still feel its a good value for the money but probably because we bought the 10 day hoppers no expiry + waterparks 2 years ago and still have 6 days left. When we bought the 10 day we planned to get 5 trips out of them. Each 7 day vacation for us includes 2 park days and one waterpark visit. We do something every other day and the off days we do downtown disney or hang out at our offsite resort. We always use Skyauction for our resort and have never spent more then $600 for a 7 nights stay. We totally can drive down(17 hrs away) stay offsite and be in Florida for 7 days and spend less then 1k. I can't do that anywhere else for the same amount of time.

 

[LisaInNc]

I see4 Disney costing more

They changed how they price hotel rooms. Now a stay might have one rate for the week nights and anotehr for the weekend. That is how regualr hotels do it but Disney always did it differently. I found that alone is comting my family more.

The meal plan changed. It gives you less and you now have to pay the tip.

The DDE changed and how they add the tip for you.

Holiday meals are costing more.

Tickets go up every year.

It seemed for a while every notice I was getting about changes was a price increase.

On the plus side Disney did start with the Magical Express which my family calls the "Not So Magical Express" because of a luggage mix up that we will never forget.

They also put refrigerators in the moderate and deluxe resorts.

All in all I do think that Disney costs more and I also think that the price increases are significent. I know for my family the hotel price is costing us almost $300 more for one trip!

 

[HunnyPots]

EVERYTHING is too expensive! Prices have gone up all over, not just at WDW.
Truthfully, vacationing in general has become too expensive for many families.
I'm sure there are some destinatiions that may come out to be less costly than disney but I haven't found any that can meet disney's value. This year, we priced out several vacation options other than WDW but couldn't justify the cost. MCO was our cheapest destination airport and for less than $32 a day per person we'll get unlimited entertainment by way of 7 day MYW tickets. We were unable to top that no matter where we looked. If we wanted to camp and hike every day and cook our own meals its probably doable but for me that's no vacation!

 

[HeatherC]

The only other option we've been able to come up with for our family of 5 that is comparable in cost to Disney is taking a cruise. There are always some deals to be found, you just have to be careful with what ship you choose. We tend to book one of the newer and ships and have never been disappointed.

Heather

 

[sarahlovesmickey]

I agree that prices have gone up a tad, but at this point, it won't keep us from not going. We have a timeshare, so again, we are somewhat protected from the increasing hotel costs. I know it's discouraging. But, we love Disney and will continue to keep going.

 

[crisi]

Something changed long term.

How many of you went on annual "Disney type" vacations as a kid? We took ONE trip to Disney, and it was a really big deal. Our normal "vacation" was to pile the family in a one room cabin with kids on sleeping bags on the floor for a week at the "lake." No air conditioning and we cooked our own food. Or we visited grandma. Hotels with interior hallways were unknown to me. Motels with grimy pools were a big deal. And we were considered a very comfortable middle class family by most standards. I never knew anyone as a kid who'd been to Hawaii ever, or Disney more than once - I remember going to Washington DC on a class trip - out of fifty kids, only three people had ever been on an airplane before.

For reference, I graduated from high school in 1984.

My sister is six years younger than me - something shifted in those six years of childhood. Her friends (same school, same socioeconomic group) had almost all been skiing in Colorado and gone to Disney. Flying and vacations became more common. But it still wasn't a "were did you go on vacation" it was "what did you do on vacation."

Recently its become "expected" - rather than "what are you going to do on vacation" its "where are you going to go." The middle class "keeping up with the Jones" now includes an annual vacation - that doesn't involve a tent (or if it does involve a tent, also involves whitewater rafting down the Colorado River.)

That wasn't economically sustainable for most people. Good times will come again and people will be able to vacation again in grander and more frequent ways.

Has Disney gotten more expensive - yep - its been going up fairly consistantly for years. But it was not exactly a cheap vacation in 1984 when we took our family vacation to Disney staying offsite. The type of lake cabins we stayed at as kids are difficult to find now (and book up fast as they are such a value). The camping grounds out at Wisconsin Dells have been replaced with $200 a night hotel rooms and waterparks. Anyone remember really cheap Vegas trips - harder to find that, now. I'm guessing the coasts are not much different.

 

[HeatherC]

Crisi - Very well said!!!! That's definitely how I remembered our famiy vacations. And they were AWESOME!! God forbid my kids don't have their own room in a villa...what have I done?

Heather

 

[sarahlovesmickey]

I agree with Crisi to an extent. During my childhood, I visited Florida only twice. Yet, my son who is 6 has already been there several times. And when we went to Florida those 2 times, we stayed in places like the Holiday Inn or some place like that. But, I am one of those parents who wants better for my kids. (not that I had it all that rough, but...) We enjoy these vacations as a family. This is our time to spend together, because "real life" can get so rushed and busy for us between appointments, school, sports, working full time, etc... We enjoy this time and yes, it's pricey, but worth every penny.

 

[granmanh603]

Something changed long term.

How many of you went on annual "Disney type" vacations as a kid? We took ONE trip to Disney, and it was a really big deal. Our normal "vacation" was to pile the family in a one room cabin with kids on sleeping bags on the floor for a week at the "lake." No air conditioning and we cooked our own food. Or we visited grandma. Hotels with interior hallways were unknown to me. Motels with grimy pools were a big deal. And we were considered a very comfortable middle class family by most standards. I never knew anyone as a kid who'd been to Hawaii ever, or Disney more than once - I remember going to Washington DC on a class trip - out of fifty kids, only three people had ever been on an airplane before.

For reference, I graduated from high school in 1984.

My sister is six years younger than me - something shifted in those six years of childhood. Her friends (same school, same socioeconomic group) had almost all been skiing in Colorado and gone to Disney. Flying and vacations became more common. But it still wasn't a "were did you go on vacation" it was "what did you do on vacation."

Recently its become "expected" - rather than "what are you going to do on vacation" its "where are you going to go." The middle class "keeping up with the Jones" now includes an annual vacation - that doesn't involve a tent (or if it does involve a tent, also involves whitewater rafting down the Colorado River.)

That wasn't economically sustainable for most people. Good times will come again and people will be able to vacation again in grander and more frequent ways.

Has Disney gotten more expensive - yep - its been going up fairly consistantly for years. But it was not exactly a cheap vacation in 1984 when we took our family vacation to Disney staying offsite. The type of lake cabins we stayed at as kids are difficult to find now (and book up fast as they are such a value). The camping grounds out at Wisconsin Dells have been replaced with $200 a night hotel rooms and waterparks. Anyone remember really cheap Vegas trips - harder to find that, now. I'm guessing the coasts are not much different.

I am the parent of a child who graduated HS in 1983 and we never even got to WDW, she took me on my dream trip in 1992(just the 2 of us) in 1998 thy bought DVC and took us again and now we bought but her children are constantly asking when are we going again(they have all gone when 6 months old and go at least once a year)
But back to the topic....I feel since Bob Iger took over prices have gone up a whole lot more than previously, even raised the prices on tickets 2 X one year but of course it is about the bottom line profit isn't?????

 

[solfan68]

DS is performing next month and I am pricing a quick trip to watch and pop is $119 going up to $129 during our trip for a standard room. Thats way over the top and we are staying off-site.

I know we're talking about a 15 year difference, but I remember when DW and I paid this for our honeymoon excursion to CBR.

The family is returning this summer, but I honestly can't think that there will be a return trip then for a couple of years. If we're going to make the effort to travel from Pennsylvania, I want to stay onsite. If that means trips are few and far between, well... so be it.

 

[crisi]

But back to the topic....I feel since Bob Iger took over prices have gone up a whole lot more than previously, even raised the prices on tickets 2 X one year but of course it is about the bottom line profit isn't?????

I sure hope so. I own Disney stock. It would be irresponsible for them not to be about bottom line profit.

 

[granmanh603]

I sure hope so. I own Disney stock. It would be irresponsible for them not to be about bottom line profit.

I own Disney stock too but that was not Walts Dream?

 

[sarahlovesmickey]

where can one buy Disney Stock???

 

[mickeyfan2]

Something changed long term.

How many of you went on annual "Disney type" vacations as a kid? We took ONE trip to Disney, and it was a really big deal. Our normal "vacation" was to pile the family in a one room cabin with kids on sleeping bags on the floor for a week at the "lake." No air conditioning and we cooked our own food. Or we visited grandma. Hotels with interior hallways were unknown to me. Motels with grimy pools were a big deal. And we were considered a very comfortable middle class family by most standards. I never knew anyone as a kid who'd been to Hawaii ever, or Disney more than once - I remember going to Washington DC on a class trip - out of fifty kids, only three people had ever been on an airplane before.

For reference, I graduated from high school in 1984.

My sister is six years younger than me - something shifted in those six years of childhood. Her friends (same school, same socioeconomic group) had almost all been skiing in Colorado and gone to Disney. Flying and vacations became more common. But it still wasn't a "were did you go on vacation" it was "what did you do on vacation."

Recently its become "expected" - rather than "what are you going to do on vacation" its "where are you going to go." The middle class "keeping up with the Jones" now includes an annual vacation - that doesn't involve a tent (or if it does involve a tent, also involves whitewater rafting down the Colorado River.)

That wasn't economically sustainable for most people. Good times will come again and people will be able to vacation again in grander and more frequent ways.

Has Disney gotten more expensive - yep - its been going up fairly consistantly for years. But it was not exactly a cheap vacation in 1984 when we took our family vacation to Disney staying offsite. The type of lake cabins we stayed at as kids are difficult to find now (and book up fast as they are such a value). The camping grounds out at Wisconsin Dells have been replaced with $200 a night hotel rooms and waterparks. Anyone remember really cheap Vegas trips - harder to find that, now. I'm guessing the coasts are not much different.

My first and only Disney trip I got from my parents was when I was 17.

We would go to my Aunt and Uncles and drive to the Jersey shore for the day. If we were really lucky we would drive down for three days and rent a place (not a hotel) that was marginal at best.

We would go to Grandmas or an Aunt/Uncle's during the summer.

My first plane trip and only one until I graduated college was when I was 15. My cousin and I flew to our Aunt and Uncle's house one way. We spent time with them and then they drove us back home when they came to visit that summer.

I graduated high school in 1979.

 

[crisi]

I own Disney stock too but that was not Walts Dream?

The Walt I've read biographies of was a firm capitalist who made a ton of money for himself and his family and wasn't exactly letting people into Disneyland for free.

 

[abeyst]

where can one buy Disney Stock???

http://corporate.disney.go.com/investors/stock_info.html

If prices keep going up for the bottom line, maybe investing vacation money into stocks instead isn't such a bad idea.....