Need to vent about how expensive WDW is now

[BaybeeYoda]

We have been thinking about abandoning Disney over the last three years. We bought Dvc in 2011 and have been going yearly since. Kids are 13 and 11 now.

The 13 year old is open to other venues, but the 11-year-old is still very pro Disney. It is just so cost prohibitive now.

We are going to LA/Salt Lake City/Denver over spring break for two weeks. If kids find this vacation fun, we may feel compelled to sell our Dvc and not go on a yearly basis anymore. The value is just not there anymore. I hate feeling nickeled and dimed, and I hate feeling like I’m a cash cow when I’m not.

So yeah, disney is getting too expensive and I am starting to not enjoy going as a result. Staycations aren’t the worst things in the world and saving $10,000+ per trip is also compelling as I look towards retirement in another 15 years.

So there you go. It was fun while it lasted but I do see the light at the end of the tunnel, sans Disney World. If it wasn’t so expensive and didn’t cost me $3000 just for park tickets for each trip, I would be much more willing to continue using my Dvc .

 

[Jack Kerouac]

It seems to me that a lot of people being priced out of WDW (or want WDW to be a great experience with the same prices from 10+ years ago) want to complain that it’s solely a Disney-created, and Disney-related, problem.

I will say Chapek didn’t help things by the things he said during his time as CEO. Iger seems to be trying to improve Disney’s image both inside (with CMs) and outside (general public/potential customers) the Disney parks.

But Disney is in the service/entertainment industries and those industries have been jacking up prices well above the rate of inflation since 2020.

Just look at Chipotle. They continue to raise their prices because they see no pushback from customer demand, not because the input costs continue to climb.

My nearest Taco Bell just raised the price of a combo meal by 50% within the past month. Does that reflect the current rate of inflation?

When I worked at Subway in the early 2000s, you could buy six 6” sandwiches for $9.99. Now you can’t buy two for that price. And inflation was relatively tame for many of those years.

The price increases are everywhere and they have been everywhere. It’s not just WDW.

Disney has to protect their customer experience inside the parks and one way they can do that is by increasing prices. Lower ticket prices mean more people in the parks. I’m guessing many complaining about high admission prices would also complain about longer wait times if ticket prices were cheaper.

My oldest son told me during our last trip that he wished WDW was free for everyone. I told him that he wouldn’t want to go to WDW if it was free.

 

[Chili327]

@Jack Kerouac a 6" sub used to be $1.50?? (seems crazy nowadays. lol)

 

[Jack Kerouac]

@Jack Kerouac a 6" sub used to be $1.50?? (seems crazy nowadays. lol)

It was a promotion called the Subway Six Pack. I hated it, as every customer got one or two. But when I was a customer, it was awesome.

With three hungry boys, I wish those prices were still around.

 

[40ariel]

For what it is worth I was looking at some old receipts and:

• I purchased 4 day, 1 park per day tickets for family of 4 in 2019 for $1332 taxes in. I priced tickets at the same time of year in 2024 for a family of 4 - $2250.
• We did a 5 night pop century trip in 2018 with 4 day, 1 park per day tickets and the deluxe dining plan for $4492 taxes in. Just for fun I priced a trip at the same time in 2024 for $ 5513 (with the disney dining plan since deluxe is not offered - although if the deluxe dining plan was offered it would likely add significant cost)

 

[DCLMP]

It seems to me that a lot of people being priced out of WDW (or want WDW to be a great experience with the same prices from 10+ years ago) want to complain that it’s solely a Disney-created, and Disney-related, problem.

I will say Chapek didn’t help things by the things he said during his time as CEO. Iger seems to be trying to improve Disney’s image both inside (with CMs) and outside (general public/potential customers) the Disney parks.

But Disney is in the service/entertainment industries and those industries have been jacking up prices well above the rate of inflation since 2020.

Just look at Chipotle. They continue to raise their prices because they see no pushback from customer demand, not because the input costs continue to climb.

My nearest Taco Bell just raised the price of a combo meal by 50% within the past month. Does that reflect the current rate of inflation?

When I worked at Subway in the early 2000s, you could buy six 6” sandwiches for $9.99. Now you can’t buy two for that price. And inflation was relatively tame for many of those years.

The price increases are everywhere and they have been everywhere. It’s not just WDW.

Disney has to protect their customer experience inside the parks and one way they can do that is by increasing prices. Lower ticket prices mean more people in the parks. I’m guessing many complaining about high admission prices would also complain about longer wait times if ticket prices were cheaper.

My oldest son told me during our last trip that he wished WDW was free for everyone. I told him that he wouldn’t want to go to WDW if it was free.

I went to Subway last week for the first time in years 8.99 for 6 inch sub, plus chips and a drink it was 14 and change. I was floored.

 

[DCLMP]

For what it is worth I was looking at some old receipts and:

• I purchased 4 day, 1 park per day tickets for family of 4 in 2019 for $1332 taxes in. I priced tickets at the same time of year in 2024 for a family of 4 - $2250.
• We did a 5 night pop century trip in 2018 with 4 day, 1 park per day tickets and the deluxe dining plan for $4492 taxes in. Just for fun I priced a trip at the same time in 2024 for $ 5513 (with the disney dining plan since deluxe is not offered - although if the deluxe dining plan was offered it would likely add significant cost)

I bought 2-day base tickets to DL in August of 2022. Two tickets with Genie Plus was 575.00. Same exact tickets now 760.00. That price increase is just 15 months.

 

[Miffy]

I was going to post about how I've modified my WDW vacations over the years--staying on I-Drive, staying Value instead of Mod or Deluxe, etc., etc., but then I realized that I've only ever gone to WDW with one other person, an adult.

I have no idea how someone with children can afford more than a couple of days at WDW. The ticket prices alone are staggering.

 

[karen4546]

Can I please just vent for a minute?
I am in the very beginning stages of planning a Spring Break 2025 Disney World vacation. This week I decided to start looking into how much things will cost so we can set our budget and start saving for it. Boy am I glad I did that because it is definitely going to take over a year to save up for this trip.

The most astonishing thing to me is that we went to Disney World for Spring Break in 2021, and according to the notes that I have from planning that trip, it will cost us $3,500 more this time to do the EXACT SAME VACATION for the same number of park days (5) at the same hotel (Contemporary). That is crazy to me. 2.5 years later and the price has gone up by 38%. How do people afford to do this more than one time every 5 years?

This is going to be a special vacation for our family. My oldest will be a senior in high school and it will be our last big vacation before she graduates and moves to college. I want to splurge. I want to make it extra memorable. But I am feeling discouraged by the fact that it will cost us more than the first 2 cars that my husband and I bought after getting married-- combined.

We bought into DVC to be able to visit multiple times a year. The Sorcerer AP is also a money saver.

rent DVC points or stay at a different resort.
We really like the Grand Destino Tower club level rooms. it is not a “deluxe” resort but imo rivals Riviera but has club level available. the view from the lounge is

 

[karen4546]

We have been thinking about abandoning Disney over the last three years. We bought Dvc in 2011 and have been going yearly since. Kids are 13 and 11 now.

The 13 year old is open to other venues, but the 11-year-old is still very pro Disney. It is just so cost prohibitive now.

We are going to LA/Salt Lake City/Denver over spring break for two weeks. If kids find this vacation fun, we may feel compelled to sell our Dvc and not go on a yearly basis anymore. The value is just not there anymore. I hate feeling nickeled and dimed, and I hate feeling like I’m a cash cow when I’m not.

So yeah, disney is getting too expensive and I am starting to not enjoy going as a result. Staycations aren’t the worst things in the world and saving $10,000+ per trip is also compelling as I look towards retirement in another 15 years.

So there you go. It was fun while it lasted but I do see the light at the end of the tunnel, sans Disney World. If it wasn’t so expensive and didn’t cost me $3000 just for park tickets for each trip, I would be much more willing to continue using my Dvc .

Unless you are going during the December block out, the cost of a Sorcerer pass is not quite $1000pp. You only need one pass to have the memory maker.

are you saying with DVC you are paying $10000 on a yearly vacation?

i can see that price if you are not from the states and are flying At least Select or maybe business class.

I doubt you will have difficulty selling you DVC though. The resale market has been good.

 

[gottalovepluto]

I bought 2-day base tickets to DL in August of 2022. Two tickets with Genie Plus was 575.00. Same exact tickets now 760.00. That price increase is just 15 months.

By Disney’s own report Disneyland is still killing it while WDW has slowed- although killing it has been driven by ticket price increases and holy Toledo do I get that now. I’ve been wondering why the heck they’re bothering with the MK program when demand is so incredibly hot- but now I wonder if what I perceived as hot demand is actually fewer people paying more masked by the MK program keeping crowds elevated

 

[Minnie1222]

I’ve been wondering why the heck they’re bothering with the MK program when demand is so incredibly hot- but now I wonder if what I perceived as hot demand is actually fewer people paying more masked by the MK program keeping crowds elevated

What is the MK program?

 

[DCLMP]

By Disney’s own report Disneyland is still killing it while WDW has slowed- although killing it has been driven by ticket price increases and holy Toledo do I get that now. I’ve been wondering why the heck they’re bothering with the MK program when demand is so incredibly hot- but now I wonder if what I perceived as hot demand is actually fewer people paying more masked by the MK program keeping crowds elevated

I buy all my tickets from undercover tourists. They archive all my past orders and the price increase is pretty astonishing. It's not quite so bad for the longer-length WDW tickets. I'm not familiar with the MK program I can't comment on that.

 

[Smugpugmug]

What is the MK program?

Magic Key. Disneyland's version of an annual pass.

 

[MartyParty]

Came across this interesting blog on costs for WDW right now. Touches on what we've been discussing in this thread. Author does a good job looking at types of stays, when you're staying, # in your party, etc.

Here is the family of four analysis. There are other charts as well. Link below.



https://touringplans.com/blog/disney-world-estimated-cost-vacation-budget/

 

[Minnie1222]

Magic Key. Disneyland's version of an annual pass.

Thank you. Thought I was missing out on a new fun program at Magic Kingdom.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Thank you. Thought I was missing out on a new fun program at Magic Kingdom.

Hahaha, sorry about that! They changed the name in CA in an attempt to pretend they weren’t annual passes

 

[Boopuff]

We bought DVC as our family continues to grow. Our final trip as a family of 5 adults helped us look into DVC. Our family has grown to 8. After looking into options, and I prefer we stay together, DVC was a perfect choice for us. I, personally, consider Disney to be a fancy vacation. It's a resort. Not just a theme park. Prices go up and up, and always will, yet people flock to Disney. We always see posts of the crowds.

 

[Jack Kerouac]

I have no idea how someone with children can afford more than a couple of days at WDW. The ticket prices alone are staggering.

We have three boys (ages 8, 6, and 3) and WDW is perfect for their ages. Seeing how excited they get about the rides and the resorts has made buying DVC one of my best investment decisions ever, as it allows me to invest in our family and create memories.

Having seen clients believe they have time to travel in retirement only to experience health issues or an early death, I chose to forgo a little bit of extra saving for retirement to do this with my boys while they are young.

Our 10-day August trip cost us around $11,000 but $5,000 of that was the Sorcerer Passes that will cover our February and May/June 2024 trips. We initially bought a 7-day one park per day ticket from Sam’s Club (we weren’t members but we could still buy the tickets) and then used them as credit for the SP.

We have always flown from Chicago, but after getting a larger vehicle, we may start to drive down and see some sites on the way.

Future trips will likely be less park heavy.

I keep and continually update a lot of spreadsheets related to trip costs, estimates for various restaurants, etc. As of now, we have our 2024 trips costs covered and about half of 2025 covered. Basically always backfilling what we spend on our trips.

WDW is certainly expensive, but we forgo other things in order to make WDW a reality for us.

 

[DCLMP]

We bought DVC as our family continues to grow. Our final trip as a family of 5 adults helped us look into DVC. Our family has grown to 8. After looking into options, and I prefer we stay together, DVC was a perfect choice for us. I, personally, consider Disney to be a fancy vacation. It's a resort. Not just a theme park. Prices go up and up, and always will, yet people flock to Disney. We always see posts of the crowds.

I would consider WDW a theme park vacation, not a fancy vacation. There are definitely better resorts and more "fancy" places to travel to. I can't wrap my head around the fact that people think WDW is a normal vacation cost.