Price increase show discussion

Agreed. Concerts are upwards of $100 now, and it’s 2 hours of entertainment. I don’t know any stadium/auditorium with free parking either. Want a beer while enjoying the show? $20.

Ok, picky point. Things are expensive but I have yet to see a $20 beer at concerts or sporting events or even at Disney! On average it’s around $10 which is still ridiculous.
 
being more complicated
I know this isn't a cost issue but I think it plays into the whole conversation of "value". Not only are we paying more than ever, we're also dealing with an increasingly complex system for planning our visits which also detracts from the overall experience. I think Disney has reached a point where they've made it unnecessarily difficult.

We don't plan way in advance so not all of this affects us personally, but the situation now is that you can make your ADRs at 180 days out but can't book your FPs until 60 (or 30) days out so it's impossible to conveniently coordinate your attraction times with your meal times. Oh, and we may change park hours as little as 15 or 20 days out in some cases so you may find out last minute that the plans you made won't work anyway.

Would it really kill them to release park hours well in advance to help people decide when they want to visit, then open FP booking and ADR booking at the same time? They aren't new at this. They've been doing it for nearly 50 years. They should have it figured out by now.
 
After 2 years of APs, 6 trips and a ton of fun times we will be taking a break. I cannot buy APs at what they cost now. Epcot construction is another factor. How they felt they could hike APs like that and have this much construction going on is beyond me.

I'm also tired of planning and I usually love doing it. They drive me crazy with the sudden changes in offerings and park hours. I just need a break from it.

I'm looking at a Thanksgiving trip in 2021. If construction still isn't complete we will push that to 2022. At this rate it's going to take that long for us to save up enough to do Disney the way we like to do it.

ETA: We are going to Universal for 3 nights before switching to Disney this November. For what we are paying for Hard Rock garden view we get EP and a 10 minute walk to the parks. Disney deluxes are far more for the same week.
 
I'm looking at a Thanksgiving trip in 2021.
We are going for the 50th on October 1, 2021. I don't care what it costs. I'm planning on us staying at Contemporary or BLT so that we can walk into MK. I'm sure it will probably be $600/night which is what we usually spend for a week offsite but for this one occasion, I will splurge, at least for a couple of nights.
 


We are going for the 50th on October 1, 2021. I don't care what it costs. I'm planning on us staying at Contemporary or BLT so that we can walk into MK. I'm sure it will probably be $600/night which is what we usually spend for a week offsite but for this one occasion, I will splurge, at least for a couple of nights.


I would love to be there on 10/1, but darn kid and her school schedule will prevent it. ;)
 
We are going for the 50th on October 1, 2021. I don't care what it costs. I'm planning on us staying at Contemporary or BLT so that we can walk into MK. I'm sure it will probably be $600/night which is what we usually spend for a week offsite but for this one occasion, I will splurge, at least for a couple of nights.

we are thinking of similar as well. We have our trip in February booked largely to see Galaxy's Edge, then I think we take like 18+ months off and get APs for everyone, go late summer 2021 for a "normal" trip, then a short trip for the 5pth around Oct 1st and then one other trip within that AP period (hopefully in time to see a largely finished EPCOT) and then perhaps take another longer break
 
I know this isn't a cost issue but I think it plays into the whole conversation of "value". Not only are we paying more than ever, we're also dealing with an increasingly complex system for planning our visits which also detracts from the overall experience. I think Disney has reached a point where they've made it unnecessarily difficult.

We don't plan way in advance so not all of this affects us personally, but the situation now is that you can make your ADRs at 180 days out but can't book your FPs until 60 (or 30) days out so it's impossible to conveniently coordinate your attraction times with your meal times. Oh, and we may change park hours as little as 15 or 20 days out in some cases so you may find out last minute that the plans you made won't work anyway.

Would it really kill them to release park hours well in advance to help people decide when they want to visit, then open FP booking and ADR booking at the same time? They aren't new at this. They've been doing it for nearly 50 years. They should have it figured out by now.

This! It just would make things much simpler.
 


Pete used to say all the time when the price increased "You people can complain all you want, but people will still continue to pay it, so quit whining".

But even at these increases it looks like Pete is starting to doubt his own theory!
I think a not-insignificant number of people have reached that point where the cost is now too high.

We haven't stopped going but, as I said earlier, we have made some changes to how we go and what we do when we're there.
 
For us the 'value' is no longer there at Disney. We went to Disneyworld earlier this year after not going for many years. The HUGE crowds basically mean it takes twice as long to do what you used to be able to do in one day at the typical park. Combine that with the high cost of hotels/food/etc............and just not high on our list of a place we have any interest in returning. We can basically go on TWO other vacations for the price of ONE trip to Disney.

We will never use a spreadsheet to plan out our vacation days. Seems too much like a job instead of doing things spontaneously when on vacation. Part of the 'value' issue is the excessive time needed to plan the vacation.
 
I really think that Pete did a good job laying out many of the factors that are IMHO combining to create this situation. The potential recession is a factor, the hotel prices, food prices, ticket prices are factors, the threat of Star Wars crowds are a factor too.

How many complained about the crowds in the past? Either Disney was wise and listened and hiked the prices to reduce the crowds (consider the year end results, profits up/attendance down) or they just totally misread the demand for Star Wars. I think there are elements of both I also think they bumbled the opening and should have waited for both rides to be ready. They over promised and under delivered, I found SWGE at Disneyland to be wonderful, but with only 1 ride it was severally lacking in staying power.
 
For us the 'value' is no longer there at Disney. We went to Disneyworld earlier this year after not going for many years. The HUGE crowds basically mean it takes twice as long to do what you used to be able to do in one day at the typical park. Combine that with the high cost of hotels/food/etc............and just not high on our list of a place we have any interest in returning. We can basically go on TWO other vacations for the price of ONE trip to Disney.

We will never use a spreadsheet to plan out our vacation days. Seems too much like a job instead of doing things spontaneously when on vacation. Part of the 'value' issue is the excessive time needed to plan the vacation.

It would be really interesting if one day Disney decided to do away with ADR's, Fastpasses, and just have things done like they were in the 90's...how things would go.
 
My family has gone to Disney World yearly for many years, but a week-long Disney trip has finally exceeded the top of my family's budget. (sob) We are adjusting and will just get a smaller Disney fix but maybe more beach vacations!

I agree with the person above that comparing a Disney vacation to an entertainment/sporting event isn't apples to apples. My family does spend $100 a ticket to see a play from time to time (we have tickets to see Wicked in a few weeks!), but that's one evening and there's no hotel or travel expense.

Before we owned DVC, we'd go to Cocoa Beach for a couple of nights, do a couple of nights at the Hilton by Universal, and then the rest of the time at a Disney resort. I would strongly suggest trying one of the Disney Springs or Bonnet Creek resorts. I know they're not "in the bubble" per-say, but many are as nice or even nicer and are MUCH more reasonably priced! All the Hiltons (except the older "Hilton Lake Buena Vista" which I would suggest avoiding) even have lazy rivers right there at the resort!


Ok, picky point. Things are expensive but I have yet to see a $20 beer at concerts or sporting events or even at Disney! On average it’s around $10 which is still ridiculous.

Concert and sports arenas charge FAR more than Disney for food & beverage (although Disney has worked hard to catch up recently.) Last NFL game I was at it was $15 for a bud light, so $20 isn't too far fetched. I know thanks to reports from the cancelled Elton John concert that the amway arena in Orlando charges $8 for a fountain pepsi. (Save $2 and get Coke in a thermal detonator...sheesh..)

That said, credit where it's due: they've massively dropped prices at the new stadium in Atlanta (full disclosure - my company does some consulting work for the Falcons) and they've actually made more money as a result. Who knew that not ripping people off could be profitable?? ($5 for a hot dog AND coke. Crazy, right??)
 
It would be really interesting if one day Disney decided to do away with ADR's, Fastpasses, and just have things done like they were in the 90's...how things would go.

That is DL for the most part. It's oldschool fast pass and 60-day ADRs, but most of the restaurants you can get seated as a walk-up unless it's super crowded. "Maxpass" just allows you to grab a fastpass on your phone and skip walking up to the ride. (It's the same software they use at WDW, just without implementing the 3 advance bookings.)
 
I agree with the person above that comparing a Disney vacation to an entertainment/sporting event isn't apples to apples. My family does spend $100 a ticket to see a play from time to time (we have tickets to see Wicked in a few weeks!), but that's one evening and there's no hotel or travel expense.
Exactly this. Also, when you have a family of 5...maybe having one evening where I spend $100 per person and $50 per person dinner, and $30 parking, and $50 on a souvenir is less "value" than all day in the parks, etc. One day of doing it is $830 whereas the Disney vacation is coming in at $8000/$9000 dollars. Maybe it is 10x as much fun/value, but that doesn't matter if I don't have it to spend.

I think we reached our breaking point last year when we decided to try Universal. We can still get a week there in a nice hotel in our budget. We could find a way to do WDW...stay offsite, eat offsite, etc., etc. but I think we will prefer to have Universal, a cruise (not DCL anymore either due to the cost), and maybe a trip to CA to see my friends/family which will include a day or two at Disneyland, but not a vacation centered on that.

I feel like part of the love for WDW was the inclusive and family friendly fun we had. When I price out a vacation like that for my family, I just feel like we can go on cruise for the same money and we could have more relaxation and more adventures OR we can have that same experience at Universal for a lot less money OR we could travel somewhere new that we want to see.
 
We are also paying the salary increases this same podcast said all cast members should get so you can’t have it both ways. Disney is never going to ever pay its people without passing it off to us. I still don’t mind yet but they are eventually going to price me out for sure.
 
Ok, picky point. Things are expensive but I have yet to see a $20 beer at concerts or sporting events or even at Disney! On average it’s around $10 which is still ridiculous.

I feel like this may be why the cost isn't the issue for me. I'm not immune to the price hikes, but I'm a bit desensitized. I'm in Toronto - unfortunately, it is one of the most expensive cities to live in and entertain yourself in. I paid $18.50 for wine at my last concert, so $20 isn't an exaggeration. Housing, gas, utilities, food is all at a premium. Because I'm so used to paying through the nose for EVERYTHING, I don't expect any different on vacation.

My value gets lost because of the work involved in planning the trip. I go on vacation to relax, not to have to adhere to a schedule for 90% of my day like I do in my 'regular' life.
 
We are a family of 5, and this year with the huge recent cost increase on annual passes, we decided not to renew them for our 2 oldest children( who are now both in college). Another friend of our family, who had annual passes for years, decided not renew at all this year based on the cost increase. The whole price increase seems penny wise and pound foolish, I am sure there are many others out there who made the same decision this year. It also made me angry, I feel like Disney was not treating some of their most loyal customers fairly.
 
I always thought Disney Planning was easy once you just read up on it. Barebones is ADRs at 180, FP at 60 and then all your normal vacation planning of figuring out where you want to go each day.

With the 1000s of dollars your're spending on this vacation, if you don't put some forethought in to it, it's your fault for not getting the most out of it.
 
With the 1000s of dollars your're spending on this vacation, if you don't put some forethought in to it, it's your fault for not getting the most out of it.

No doubt. Everyone should do some research/homework before a WDW (or any other) vacation.

I always thought Disney Planning was easy once you just read up on it.

"Easy" may be a bit of a stretch. Although, it's not rocket science and there definitely are some people who make a much bigger deal out of it than it really is.

Barebones is ADRs at 180, FP at 60 and then all your normal vacation planning of figuring out where you want to go each day.

The only problem with this statement is that it is backwards. You first need to figure out where you want to go each day before anything else such as ADRs or FP+. That's why it's an issue that they don't finalize park hours at least 6 months in advance. Anyway, once you've decided which park you'll go to on each day, then you can do ADRs at 180 and then FP+ at 60 days.
 

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