Ridiculous pricing

[DisLaw]

there is also the idea that maybe p person could technically "afford" to pay $$$ for these rooms but choose to spend their money differently, just as there are those of very modest means who save and save to splurge on a WDW vacation so to each his own as my mom would say!

And there are those living beyond their means, racking up credit card debt which is a whole other discussion!

For the most part however , especially with discounts, there is a Disney resort room category that is affordable for most people.

 

[Yarbogash]

Okay so I haven't taken a Disney trip in a very long time as I lived near there for 6 years. Now I am planning my first trip back to the World and love staying at BWI. When I looked up the "standard" non-discounted pricing for BWI I almost fainted. Its over 500 dollars. That is half my monthly mortgage. The sad thing is I can afford this but would NEVER consider paying this much. Is this really what the average Joe is paying these days? I live in Las Vegas and can get a room (not the locals rate but the book online rate) at the Venetian for 205 a night. If I want breakfast included the rate is 229 a night. This is without discounts or specials. Just the rack rate. It is a much more luxurious resort hotel. Tell me that Disney has not fallen that far off the planet.

I'm feeling ya. People have outlined the differences and yeah, I think few pay rack rate at Disney but this is why we visit Vegas 2 or 3 or even 4 times a year and Disney once. Funny thing is if given a choice our 5 year old most often prefers Vegas.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Vegas isn't a closed system. Even on the strip, there's more competition.

If you are staying on property, Disney holds a near-monopoly. While there are a limited number of non-Disney hotels on property, they all lack some form of benefit given to the Disney hotels, be it EMH, 60 day FP+, Magical Express, etc.

When you leave the Disney property, you can find many hotels in many price ranges. You will have to calculate the costs of parking on Disney property, a rental car, or etc. etc. to properly compare, and realize you lose 60 day FP+, which may or may not be a "value" for you.

But Disney sets their prices on their property.

 

[DisLaw]

Try going to New York or Paris and staying in a comparable room and desirable tourist location. Then compare the entertainment value received. Disney becomes a deal. It's all about supply and demand. If you don't pay it, someone else will, though these days those someone elses have been more and more international tourist.

I agree! It's not just Disney it's everywhere! Heck even in upstate NY, the rates charged by the local Hampton inn near my DDs college are crazy! $250 at times and that's not graduation, when they go up to almost $400! So supply and demand.....

 

[Jetta8300]

Okay so I haven't taken a Disney trip in a very long time as I lived near there for 6 years. Now I am planning my first trip back to the World and love staying at BWI. When I looked up the "standard" non-discounted pricing for BWI I almost fainted. Its over 500 dollars. That is half my monthly mortgage. The sad thing is I can afford this but would NEVER consider paying this much. Is this really what the average Joe is paying these days? I live in Las Vegas and can get a room (not the locals rate but the book online rate) at the Venetian for 205 a night. If I want breakfast included the rate is 229 a night. This is without discounts or specials. Just the rack rate. It is a much more luxurious resort hotel. Tell me that Disney has not fallen that far off the planet.

Just want to say that I totally agree with you. We can afford to stay deluxe, but I almost won't just out of principle. I personally think it's ridiculous what they charge for what you get. If we got some sort of amazing room like we do in Cancun, you bet I'd pay $600 a night. However even the deluxes to me are like staying at basically a $200 per night if that hotel anywhere else. I get people pay for the location, etc. etc. "supply and demand!" etc. etc. I totally get it, But honestly I just can't believe that people continue to pay it time and time again.

I will say though, we travel quite a bit so we have a lot to compare it to, and maybe many people don't. A lot of people who pay these kinds of prices go to Disney time and time again and that's their vacation of choice, and are kind of just in a Disney bubble, and prefer it that way. And there's enough people like that out there who pay $600 a night to go to the Polynesian, instead of paying $400 a night to actually GO to Hawaii!

 

[Dean Marino]

Looking at the original post. I would suggest not going.

All personal opinion, your choice, Not going to reply to anything.

 

[Sweets156]

Bottom line, if you don't like the pricing, then don't go. Prices go up for just about everything over time. Gas, cable, wireless services, taxes/cost of living and all travel industry components. Talking about Vegas and Disney is like talking apples and oranges. You won't find the wonderful cast members in Vegas, complimentary transportation, the perfectly kept landscaping and of course Mickey amongst many other things.

 

[AdamEfimoff]

delete

 

[AdamEfimoff]

Okay so I haven't taken a Disney trip in a very long time as I lived near there for 6 years. Now I am planning my first trip back to the World and love staying at BWI. When I looked up the "standard" non-discounted pricing for BWI I almost fainted. Its over 500 dollars. That is half my monthly mortgage. The sad thing is I can afford this but would NEVER consider paying this much. Is this really what the average Joe is paying these days? I live in Las Vegas and can get a room (not the locals rate but the book online rate) at the Venetian for 205 a night. If I want breakfast included the rate is 229 a night. This is without discounts or specials. Just the rack rate. It is a much more luxurious resort hotel. Tell me that Disney has not fallen that far off the planet.

I do not think the 'average joe' stays at a luxury hotel !!! Las Vegas is one of the cheapest luxury destinations in the USA. Just wondering what would be the price you would pay. To put this in perspective my mum stayed at 1500 dollar a night hotel. And Singita in Africa is 3000 a night

 

[AdamEfimoff]

I worked and have a degree in hospitality. You are not comparing apples to apples. It is completely different how casino hotels operate vs other hotels in general.

Yes so do I (yes really) Casino has loss leaders and this makes money by getting you to spend gaming. For instance when you get free drinks while hitting the pokies that would be a loss leader.

 

[Sue M]

Vegas had just short of 45 million visitors last year. You can get a great deluxe room - something that far surpasses anything on WDW property - for $200/night during their most busy times of the year. The difference is not the destination or the number of visitors. The difference is capacity. Disney controls capacity so they can charge more. It is a part of their business model.

I may be wrong, but I think Vegas rooms are artificially low, they want to get people in for the real $$maker, the casinos. So it's hard to compare room costs in Vegas vs Wdw.

I do believe prices at Wdw are spiralling out of control between ever rising room rates and increasing ticket costs.
We never pay rack rate. If there comes a time that I can't get a decent discount, I have no problem staying at one of the DTD hotels.

 

[AdamEfimoff]

I may be wrong, but I think Vegas rooms are artificially low, they want to get people in for the real $$maker,bathe casinos. So it's hard to compare room costs in Vegas vs Wdw.

I do believe prices at Wdw are spiralling out of control between ever rising room rates and increasing ticket costs.
We never pay rack rate. If there comes a time that I can't get a decent discount, I have no problem staying at one of the DTD hotels.[/QUOTE

so true

 

[SirDuff]

I have seen someone on the dis that rents TWO 2-bedroom villas. One at AKL because her children love the animals, and one at GF so they can take a break from MK mid day, shower and maybe a little nap. They never spend the night at GF. So, some people just are more wealthy than we can even imagine.

There's also the fact that just because someone says that they do something, doesn't mean that they do!

I may be wrong, but I think Vegas rooms are artificially low, they want to get people in for the real $$maker,bathe casinos. So it's hard to compare room costs in Vegas vs Wdw.

That was my understanding as well. But, unlike some PP, I am not in hospitality, so my understanding could be very, very wrong.
ETA - Re-reading that, it comes across as snarky. I am not being snarky, I meant that seriously (that my understanding is essentially "urban legend" status).

 

[BuckeyeBama]

I may be wrong, but I think Vegas rooms are artificially low, they want to get people in for the real $$maker, the casinos. So it's hard to compare room costs in Vegas vs Wdw.

First, the vast majority of the hotels in Vegas do not have casinos. Some of these hotels are pretty awesome. They are right there among the casinos - you can walk to the casinos. Every hotel, casino or not, charges every penny that they can, just like every other business in those cities. If they thought that they could get $500/night for a room, they would charge that. They only charge $200/night because if they charged $500/night their hotel would be empty. But in Vegas, much like Atlantic City, where you stay has little to do with where you gamble. For instance, when I go to Vegas (or Atlantic City), I stay where I can get the best room for the best rate when I am traveling, but I play poker so I always end up at one of a handful of casinos. Sure, you might lay a little more in your "home" casino, but unless you are only there for a day, you are going to venture out.

 

[ellie05]

Yes so do I (yes really) Casino has loss leaders and this makes money by getting you to spend gaming. For instance when you get free drinks while hitting the pokies that would be a loss leader.

That was my point. Rooms at Vegas (not always) but more often than not are price below the market cost to stimulate spending on more profitable goods (aka casinos). This is why often high rollers get a free stay. Disney doesn't use loss leaders that is why it doesn't make them comparable specially when talking about room rates.

 

[ayz75]

Just want to say that I totally agree with you. We can afford to stay deluxe, but I almost won't just out of principle. I personally think it's ridiculous what they charge for what you get. If we got some sort of amazing room like we do in Cancun, you bet I'd pay $600 a night. However even the deluxes to me are like staying at basically a $200 per night if that hotel anywhere else. I get people pay for the location, etc. etc. "supply and demand!" etc. etc. I totally get it, But honestly I just can't believe that people continue to pay it time and time again.

I will say though, we travel quite a bit so we have a lot to compare it to, and maybe many people don't. A lot of people who pay these kinds of prices go to Disney time and time again and that's their vacation of choice, and are kind of just in a Disney bubble, and prefer it that way. And there's enough people like that out there who pay $600 a night to go to the Polynesian, instead of paying $400 a night to actually GO to Hawaii!

Totally agree with this. We travel a lot, several times a year, and usually that includes a land vacation to Europe and land vacation to Asia (to visit my family) and a few trips to the US (we live in Canada). I'd say we average one Disney trip every 1 - 1.5 years but typically short stays (like 4 or 5 nights at WDW, or 7 day cruise). So yeah, if we weren't traveling every 2 or 3 months, we would splurge in the luxury rooms! But we want to keep the travel budget for all the other stuff so we tend to do values when we're in WDW. (that may change when the kids get older and want to use the pool.. right now my daughter is too young to care for it)

A good friend of mine will do only one or two trips a year so they have no problem paying rack rates for the luxury when they're in WDW

 

[cheryllarsen]

Most are willing to pay it so they can charge it!

 

[DSLRuser]

Have you ever considered Disney isn't for the "average joe" anymore?

Supply and demand. If the supply is overcome by demand, prices go up. Soon it becomes a commodity only the rich can afford. See LOBSTER or CAVIAR.

It sucks, but being successful and popular will make things cost more. Sooner or later a break even point will be found, but I fear we are a long way from it.

 

[DSLRuser]

I get people pay for the location, etc. etc. "supply and demand!" etc. etc. I totally get it, But honestly I just can't believe that people continue to pay it time and time again.

And there's enough people like that out there who pay $600 a night to go to the Polynesian, instead of paying $400 a night to actually GO to Hawaii!

We are in the every other year cycle for Disney. 2 years ago was at Coronado Springs. Next week is at Yacht Club. We go skiing, we went to Jamica, we travel a lot.

While I agree, Disney "deluxe" is generally priced +30% over a similar room at other places. But that +30% gets you location within all of Disney World itself, as well as the amenities of your resort.

We just did 2 weeks in Hawaii (maui) last summer. That was a $12k trip. It gives me perspective when I spend $6k for 10 days at the Yacht Club. The Disney Value is so much more then just a place to sleep.

 

[Yarbogash]

We just did 2 weeks in Hawaii (maui) last summer. That was a $12k trip. It gives me perspective when I spend $6k for 10 days at the Yacht Club. The Disney Value is so much more then just a place to sleep.

Amen to that. Every time we consider a trip to Hawaii I crunch the numbers and my conclusion is 'Let's go to Florida.'

We'll do Hawaii some day but I'm in no rush.