Len Testa Interview

[edolee]

I have used touring plans, liked it a LOT. It helped me answer some what if questions... gave me some insights how people flow through the park.

That said... the ONLY strategy that has consistently worked for me through the years is:
1) Get to the park at rope drop...
2) Ride high wait attractions for the first hour or two (Mine Train, Peter Pan, Space Mountain...) before crowds get heavy
3) Then start using fast passes and add in lower wait attractions (People Mover, Philharmagic...)

Touring plans helped me take that general plan and turn it into specifics.

This has pretty much always worked... at least until the kids got older and preferred sleeping in ;-)

Ed

PS

In a previous comment, someone mentioned that all publicly traded companies follow the same fiscal year. This is NOT true... I used to work for Hewlett-Packard... their year is Nov 1-Oct 31. Comcast (owns nbcuniversal) follows the calendar year. Jan 1-Dec 31. and so on.

On the other hand, the poster was correct that belt tightening and budget controls/threats/layoffs may increase in Disney's 4th Fiscal Quarter... Jul-Sept, to improve their year end report.

 

[disneysteve]

Do that many baby boomers have 401ks? I know neither my parents or my in-laws were ever eligible for 401ks at places they worked, until after my husband and I had already been in the workforce maybe 5-10 years, so the late 90s early 2000s.

Definitely. The 401k started in 1978 and got increasingly popular in the 80s and 90s. So 20-30 years now. Many Boomers who are already retired and lots who are still working (like me) have had them available to us.

 

[dwheaton]

I don't think that is the case at all. We were there the first of March and the people mover only loaded one car per set. That's one car in a set of 4 or 5, I can't remember how many exactly. That was the case for every set of cars. There were no orange cones though. It was very strange. I should have asked the CM who was being so careful to load this way, what the heck is going on?

That's the same way it was with us. No orange cones; just a large space between passengers. It was a really nice ride because of it, but it seemed weird given the long line.

 

[DLgal]

Do that many baby boomers have 401ks? I know neither my parents or my in-laws were ever eligible for 401ks at places they worked, until after my husband and I had already been in the workforce maybe 5-10 years, so the late 90s early 2000s.

Yep. My dad is 70 and has had a 401k since 1980 when he started working as an Electrical Engineer for a typewriter company in upstate New York. Each new job after that one also offered a 401k.

He lost 2/3 of the value of his portfolio during the recession in 2008. When he retired 3 years ago, it was back up to his pre recession value but he ended up working an extra 5 years and maxing out his contributions to make up for the loses.

 

[Sweet T n Me]

Do that many baby boomers have 401ks? I know neither my parents or my in-laws were ever eligible for 401ks at places they worked, until after my husband and I had already been in the workforce maybe 5-10 years, so the late 90s early 2000s.

That's a good question.
Most of our friends that are in their 60's, who once had a pension or a retirement plan, change into a 401k in the early 1990's.
As I recall, in better employment years, it was a bargaining tool that companies used to lure employees from their competition by matching your own contribution.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

My dad had a 401k, and I have one that I started in the mid-80s (Still working at the same place I started in '85). I'm at the tail end of the baby boomers

 

[soniam]

That's a good question.
Most of our friends that are in their 60's, who once had a pension or a retirement plan, change into a 401k in the early 1990's.
As I recall, in better employment years, it was a bargaining tool that companies used to lure employees from their competition by matching your own contribution.

In our (husband and I) industry, employers still do 401k matching. It’s pretty much expected. I think most of my generation (X) and later have 401ks if they have full time careers, but I suspect it’s less frequent with previous generations.

Yep. My dad is 70 and has had a 401k since 1980 when he started working as an Electrical Engineer for a typewriter company in upstate New York. Each new job after that one also offered a 401k.

He lost 2/3 of the value of his portfolio during the recession in 2008. When he retired 3 years ago, it was back up to his pre recession value but he ended up working an extra 5 years and maxing out his contributions to make up for the loses.

That’s a bummer about the losses. My uncle lost a ton of his 401k value around September 11th. I don’t think he made his back though, because it had to primarily be in the company stock, which never really recovered.

 

[hertamaniac]

Do that many baby boomers have 401ks? I know neither my parents or my in-laws were ever eligible for 401ks at places they worked, until after my husband and I had already been in the workforce maybe 5-10 years, so the late 90s early 2000s.

Interesting question. I have been in 401-K's and IRA's since entering the workforce decades ago. When I brought the 401-K discussion up to my parents, they always asked me "doesn't your employer give you a contract and a fully funded pension plan?".

But, there is no question in my mind that there are many more 55+ communities popping up in central FL. One of the posters on this thread was spot on in that they are likely to have disposable income to purchase WDW annual passes, etc. I don't believe WDW releases demographic data, but I could definitely see an increase in the % of attendees coming in from retirees.